Dimension Jumpers Rewrite
by Xejis
Summary: The Vongola Organization is a shining beacon in the never-ending battle against the Millefiori over the different dimensions throughout the universe. Tsuna, your average bullied nobody, gets dragged into the Vongola after an kidnapping attempt. Now he must survive in this strange new world and hopefully live long enough to find out the truth behind this endless war. (AU/No Mafia)
1. Chapter 1

***New Readers (Namely those who have not read the original) can skip this ridiculously long author's note. **

** I don't like putting author notes at the beginning (The ones I do are usually short), but since this is a rewrite I'm making an exception since there is some info you guys might need/want.**

** Right so, rewrite, I will admit I'm a bit nervous posting it. I think it's better than the original, but I've been in the position before where an author will do a rewrite and I like the original better :/ . Anywho, nervousness aside, there are some major changes, but at the same time quite a bit of the dialogue and stuff (yes that's a technical term) have remained the same. **

**If you do not want to read through the whole thing again (I wouldn't blame you) be aware some of the changes make were to the base storyline. Namely the stones and Vongola Gear. Those have been completely scratched in order for me to reach the ending I've had in mind since I started the first chapter (I had a goal? Weird I know, but true). Instead it's just the regular flames and eventually boxes as well. Another change would be the changing of the enemies name from that crazy Latin name, which was a pain in the butt to spell, to the simply Millefiore. **

**These are the major changes done and if you keep that in mind then if you really don't want to read through again (I totally understand) then you can read the last two chapters to finish up the Mukuro Arc. I will have the whole story posted on the 20****th**** so come back then. **

**For those willing to brave through this new version, there are new scenes and dialogue. I believe there are at least two completely new chapters (not counting the last two) with new material including this one. **

**I want to thank all of you for your support and I hope you enjoy this new version. It was pretty fun to write and I hope it's an enjoyable read as well. **

**Disclaimer: I am just a humble (and poor) college student who in no way owns khr or anything of its characters.**

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><p>The sky always fascinated Tsuna. He could sit and watch it for hours. Those were the only times he ever felt calm. As he stared up into the vast expanse of blue he could let go of all of his worries and regrets. It was one of the few highlights of his days. The others being his visits to Kawahira's shop, his mother cooking and her warm smile.<p>

Blinking slowing Tsuna traced a fluffy cloud drifting slowly across the sky. The dull murmurs of his classmates settled in the background. It was lunch time, but even if class was in session he wouldn't have to worry about be reprimanded for zoning out instead of listening. His teachers had given up on his a long time ago. A gaze on the back of his neck make Tsuna shift slightly to see Mochida Kensuke smirking at him as he shoved a mouthful of Tsuna's lunch in his mouth. Mochida was one of his most recent bullies who had just graduated from name calling to stealing his lunch. Tsuna shrugged it off grateful Mochida hadn't taken the final step and start using him as a practice dumbing for his kendo. A few hours without food never hurt anyone, but he didn't want to know what damage a wooden sword could cause on an unpadded opponent.

He shifted his gaze back to the sky. Middle School was miserable experience so far, but he was grateful for his window seat if nothing else. Being on the third floor also help with the view even if he was constantly frightened of being shove down the stairs by a stray bully or simply tripping which was just as high of a chance. The nurse was nice too. She always had some candy to share whenever he shuffled in there with a headache or some scraps that kept bleeding despite his efforts. She also had the best concoction for stomachaches.

Shaking his head slightly from his vague musings he noticed his classmates grabbing their bags and starting to set out toward the gym. He scowled faintly. He knew they were playing dodgeball today and honestly wished he could skip, but the gym teacher was not only strict on attendance but had a knack for catching skipping students. Tsuna already had to deal with his detention once and didn't even want to sit through another lesson on the importance of physical activity in a teenager's daily schedule.

Tsuna watched everyone leave the room before he stood up and headed toward the locker rooms himself. Slipping into the smelly room before the bell rang him quickly grabbed his gym cloths and change quickly in a bathroom stall before heading out to the main gym with the rest of the boys straggling behind. The team choosing was rather painless. The coach picked the teams and shot a stern look to those who started to whine when Tsuna was placed on their team. Tsuna was grateful for that.

Tsuna shifted to a position near the back behind several people with the hope that he wouldn't get his in the face this time despite the coach outlawing it. A girl who stood a few feet from him sent him a grimace of shared pain. Kurokawa Hana wasn't the best at sports either and dodge ball was one of her worst. Tsuna gave a halfhearted shrug. All they could do hope they got out quickly and painlessly and didn't make an embarrassment of themselves in the process.

As the game started Tsuna, however, realized this was not going to be one of those days he could scrap by unnoticed. The other team obviously had a strategy. They were aiming for the good player first hammering at them until they got out before moving onto the next one. Tsuna grimaced as he shifted to the side as a ball rolled past him. It was a good strategy, but one that didn't bode well for him. Kurokawa seemed to realize this as well judging by the fierce scowl on her face. If looks could kill Mochida, the other teams chosen captain, would be dead ten times over. Once the good member were out and fuming on the sidelines Mochida smirked at Tsuna his eye glinting happily.

Their teammates shouted encouragements towards them to no avail. Soon the only people on their side of the court was Tsuna and Kurokawa. Tsuna swallowed nervously. His hands twitched and he fought back the urge to run and hide behind the bleachers. Their teammate were silent now, most of them having already given up on their chances of winning. Kurokawa was still scowling and the guy who hit her in the leg winced as she turned her glare on him.

Tsuna jumped and screeched reflexively as one of the balls came soaring at him a high speed hitting him strait in the stomach. He was knocked back a step and ended up tripping over his own feet and falling on his butt. The other team burst out in laugher and joyous chatter congratulating themselves over their win.

Tsuna's team pouted and griped about having to clean up the gym. The coach claimed character building, but everyone knew it was a punishment for the losing team and a way the coach himself could weasel out of cleaning up. Some shot glares towards Tsuna making him shrink back feeling fairly miserable for himself. He knew this would happened when the other team started picking out the good members, but instead of trying to catch more balls to get their players back in his team insisted on a continuous attack.

The coach lectured Mochida for a few minutes on throwing to hard and aim for vital areas before walking over to where Tsuna was still sprawled on the floor frowning at the ball on his stomach.

"Are you okay Sawada?"

Tsuna glanced up at his quiet question and smiled wanly. He nodded as the man helped him to his feet hiding the wince as his stomach protested the movement.

The coach stared at him a few more seconds as if deciding whether or not to call him out on his obvious fib, before shrugging.

"Alright if you say so, but please visit the nurse once you're done cleaning up with your team."

Nodding again Tsuna shuffled over to where his team was grouped up trying to decide who would do what. Not a minute after the coach left the room as the last bell of the day rang his teammate turned and dropped what they were doing. Some grinned at him, others scowled while some even looked rather sheepish, but they all left him to clean up the rest as per usual.

"Annoying monkeys. They're as lazy as they are intelligent." A prim voice behind him sniffed in annoyance.

"Hiiieee!" Tsuna nearly had a heart attack. He whirled around brandishing the dodge ball he was holding like a shield.

Kurokawa merely raised an eyebrow at him and turned to pick up around ball. She put two more in the bin before looking over at him still standing there in a ridiculous pose. "Well are you going to help or just stand there like an idiotic monkey?"

Shifting to a more relaxed position at the familiar insult he shook his head. "N-No I'll help."

They worked in silence after that. Once they were done Kurokawa glided away without a backward glance to change and go home. Tsuna headed over to the changing room too glad to find it empty. Kurokawa had a tendency to look down on the less mature and called all boys monkeys. This obviously didn't fly very well in junior high and thus she was a bit of an outcast like himself. She wasn't quite a friend, but she was one of the few who didn't called him Dame-Tsuna and for that he was grateful.

He slinked out of the slow slowing keeping an eye out for any lingering bullies. He'd be surprised several times in the past and didn't care to repeat the experience. Luckily he seemed to be in the clear today so he straightened out slightly and quickened his pace. Deciding at the last minute to visit Kawahira he veered right and headed toward his shop. He smiled slightly as the shop came into view its windows were so cluttered with antiques and other nick knacks Tsuna couldn't see inside, but that was normal. He remembered nearly sliding into the shop when he was nine trying to get away from some bullies twice his height. They had ran right past as if it wasn't even there as Tsuna lay panting on the ground. He had met Kawahira that day and struck up an odd friendship.

Tsuna slipped quietly into the shop and was about to call out a greeting when he caught sight of a rather odd baby standing on the counter conversing with Kawahira. He had never seen a baby in such an expensive looking suit before much less a hat to go with it. Neither seemed to notice him so he shifted further into the shop to take a look around at the merchandise. He had to be extremely careful in here lest he trip and break sometime so Tsuna full heartily ignored the conversation and focused on his own feet as he navigated through the maze of a shop. There were a few new additions he noted absentmindedly. He almost ran into a large totem pole that was most defiantly not there before. There was also a two foot tall beautiful glass figuring of a dragon, a hand woven purse, a doll made out of dried tree leafs, several worn out looking books in languages Tsuna didn't recognize and a small statue of a green lizard sitting on a teetering stack of stuff about Tsuna's height. Tsuna paused and looked more closely at the little statue. He could have sworn it blinked at him. After several minutes of a one-sided staring competition Tsuna rolled his eyes at himself. He was too paranoid for his own good. Soon he'll start believing in aliens or witchcraft.

He never noticed as the 'statue' turn its head to watch as he shuffled away.

When he finished his circuit around the store he glanced over at the front desk again only to find the baby gone and Kawahira looks rather put- out as he read through what looked like a letter. He glanced up when he felt Tsuna's eye's on him and smiled while gesturing him over.

"I haven't seen you in a while Tsunayoshi. How are you fairing."

"I'm alright, thanks." Tsuna smiled as he hopped on a stool by the front desk. Kawahira knew him well. While he could and most defiantly had fallen over while sitting, there was less a chance of that than when he was standing.

"I saw a few of your new merchandise. The dragon is really pretty, but the hawk on the totem pole was kind-of scary."

Kawahira smirked. "Yes, I image so. Try stumbling upon in in the middle of the night with no light on."

Tsuna shuddered lightly at the thought and scrambled for a change in subject. "So who was t-the baby?"

"You saw him?" The sharp questions startled Tsuna as he looked up at the storekeepers suddenly blank face and piercing eyes.

It was times like these that Tsuna wondered just who Kawahira was and if he was actually Tsuna's friend.

"Y-yes." He stuttered quietly half expecting to be grilled for answers he wasn't sure he had.

"Hmm." Kawahira's glassed glinted in the dim light before he seemed to shake himself out of his odd mood and continued to chat about some of the new items.

Tsuna didn't ask about the strange baby again and decided not to bring up the lizard statue either unless Kawahira brought it up himself. He didn't like it when Kawahira got in those moods. They didn't quite frighten him, but they made him very uneasy as if he had done something wrong. It didn't help that Kawahira became so cold during those times. It was like his friend had been replaced with someone else.

They chatted for a while longer. Kawahira let Tsuna complain about the dodge ball match and how his teammate should have reacted, but didn't. He preceded to tease Tsuna mercilessly about Kurokawa. Tsuna knew he was joking, but couldn't help blushing anyway. As if anyone girl would ever like him, much less want to date him. Kawahira was reading into things too much.

Noting the time as he looked away from his crazy friend he stood up abruptly and said his goodbyes. Kawahira smirked at him knowing full well he was just trying to escape the teasing, but let him go anyway.

"Oh and Tsuna do be careful on your way home today. A shadow is lurking in Namimori."

Tsuna paused in opening the door glancing warily back at the white haired young man. He was smiling mysterious. Shivering slightly he gave a hesitant nod and left the store. He hated it when Kawahira gave cryptic warnings or advice. He wasn't smart enough to puzzle them out half the time. Glancing warily around half expecting a monster to jump out at him he continued on his way home every noise making him flinch.

Tsuna shrieked loudly as his feet fell out from under him and stared dumbly at the orange sky from his sudden position on his back in the middle of the street. Groaning at his own clumsiness he glanced around wondering what he tripped on this time.

He blinked several times as a tiny blur of black and yellow disappeared around the corner.

He walked as quickly as he could the rest of the way home feeling as though he was being watched. He breathed a sigh of relief when he caught sight of his house. Breezing by the abandoned house across the street he entered his yard and sprinted for the door not care what the neighbors might think. They were always complaining about him away, so it didn't matter what they thought of his antics. Nothing he did would be good in their eyes.

His mother greeted him at the door.

"Tsu-chan you're late!" She tried to look stern, but the smile on her face gave her away.

"Mom I told you not to c-call me that!" Tsuna whined halfheartedly. It was a losing battle he knew, but he couldn't simply give up. It was now a matter of pride.

"Tsu-chan is Tsu-chan." Was his mother's simple reply. "Dinner's on the table dear."

Tsuna toed off his shoes and followed her to the dining room. She was practically vibrating a sure sign she had something to share with him, but was waiting till they started eating.

"Sorry, I'm late mom. I went to visit Kawahira again."

"You haven't been there in a while, how is he?" His mother's smile always widened whenever he mention Kawahira. Tsuna assumed it was because he was actually talking to someone. She worried about his lack of friends. He smiled softly at her.

"Yeah, the weathers been terrible lately. He's fine. He has this new glass dragon statue you should really go see."

He usually bought her glass figurines for holidays and her birthday mostly to a lack of any idea what else she would want. But she seemed so happy receive them from Tsuna he figured she must like them at least a little bit.

"Hmm, maybe I'll stop by after I do the shopping tomorrow." She paused smiling brightly at him. "Guess what Tsu-chan!"

"W-What?" He eyed her suspiciously.

"We're going to have a guest tomorrow for dinner! The lady across the street wanted to sit down and talk to us! Isn't that exciting?"

He smiled uncertainly at her wondering why a neighbored suddenly wanted to talk and have dinner with them when no one had wanted to interact with them before. She must be new, he reasoned. She didn't know any better. They talked for a little while long about various things. Both of them shied about from topics revolving around school and Tsuna's general uselessness with ease that came with copious amounts of practice.

As he slipped off to sleep that night Tsuna wondered distantly why he felt so apprehensive about tomorrow.

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><p><strong>Okay, so that was chapter one. I know there wasn't any action, but *shrugs* that's for next chapter. XD I think I'll update the first three chapters today before going back to work onfinished up the last two chapters. Like I said in the beginning the whole Mukuro Arc will be posted on the 20****th. **

**Tell me what you thought, okay? For those of you who read the original is it better, worse (I hope not), or simply meh? **


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own it.**

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><p>Tsuna woke up late the next morning. He jerked out of bed when he saw the time and proceeded to fall flat on his face in a tangle of limbs and bed sheets. Groaning in pain and annoyance Tsuna disentangled himself and hurried through his morning routine. Stumbling down the stairs he jogged into the kitchen and snatched a piece of toast and his lunch before waving at his giggling mother and heading for the door.<p>

Shoving his shoes on his feet he hurried onto school hoping he wouldn't trip over his own feet on the way there. He was nearly to the gate when tragedy hit. Tsuna stared mournfully at the school as he was tugged back by his collar and thrown to the ground. He hit his head on the concrete and saw stars. The group of boys he didn't recognize laughed and slapped each other on the backs before continuing on into school, a few kicking him on the way past.

Frowning up at the sky Tsuna didn't move for a few minutes. The stragglers hurrying past didn't say much aside from a few snickers and coughs that sounded suspiciously like 'Dame-Tsuna'. The late bell rang and he heaved himself to his feet blinking away the sharp pain in his head. Glancing around nervously, half expecting someone to scold him for being late, he shuffled into school and made his way to his classroom. He wasn't really hurt aside from the small lump on the back of his head. The boys didn't kick hard and his lunch wasn't stolen so he considered that a good omen for now.

His teacher sent him a look, but otherwise ignored his late entrance. Classes flew by and Tsuna actually got to eat his lunch today. There was no test to hand back and no homework to turn in so he didn't have to berate himself over his back grades or endure the muffled snickers when his teacher scolded him halfheartedly on his bad grades. He gazed out the window serenely as he waited for the lunch period to end.

Walking toward the locker rooms Tsuna could have sworn he saw the baby from yesterday sitting on a window sill, but when he blinked the image was gone. Wondering if he hit his head harder than he originally thought Tsuna hurried to the locker room to change. He didn't like how his stomach suddenly dropped.

Slipping into the gym at the last minute Tsuna hung his head as the coach raised eyebrow at his almost lateness. There wasn't another game today, luckily. Instead they stretched and started running a few laps. Tsuna wasn't sure which was worse. He ran like a newborn deer. All knobby knees and flailing limbs with absolutely no coordination.

Most of his classmate liked to try and trip him on their way past. He saw one coming, but it was too late and he met the floor with a shriek and a thump.

'_Hello floor, my name Tsuna. You look familiar haven't we met before?' _He thought grimly as he lay there waiting for the pain to kick in_. _

"Mochida-san! Detention!" Roared the coach.

Tsuna groaned as a hand gripped his shoulder and pulled him up to a sitting position. He glanced warily at Kurokawa's displeased scowl. His nose was starting to hurt something fierce.

"Well it's bleeding, but obviously not broken." She muttered.

He whimper sadly feeling the blood drip down his shirt. He didn't like blood, much less his own blood. He groaned and held a hand over his dripping nose hoping that might help. She whacked him on the back of his head lightly and he flinched as her hand came in contact with the bump from that morning.

"Man up Sawada, you're pathetic." She helped him to his feet despite her harsh tone.

The coach appeared making Tsuna jump and gave him a once over with hard eyes. "Alright Sawada off to the nurse you go. Kurokawa keep an eye on him."

He blinked dumbly at him for a moment before Tsuna stumbled out of the doors with Kurokawa insistent pushing and headed toward the nurses office. It took several minutes due to the occasional stop to tip his head back to prevent blood from dripping onto the floor. Kurokawa muttered a constant stream of complaints mostly revolving around useless monkeys.

Tsuna did not expect the sight that greeted them when they entered. Instead of the short, brown eyed, long brown haired nurse he had come to know during his time in middle school a stranger had taken her place. She was tall and pale with shining purple eyes and a large black afro. Between her elaborate make-up and gaudy jewelry she did not look like she belong in a school setting.

Tsuna wondered silently if she was a substitute and why the normal nurse wasn't there today.

"Hepburn-sensei! Sawada-san has a nose bleed." Kurokawa stated flatly shoving him into the room from his place halfway hiding behind the door frame.

Giving the girl a wounded look Tsuna crept forward a few more steps and glanced up at the intimidating woman. He heard Kurokawa leave and shivered miserably at the sudden uneasy feeling creeping up his spine. His chin was suddenly gripped and tugged upward. His scream was muffled by a hand pinching his nose suddenly, and a tube of some kind was shove under his nose catching the blood. He stumbled away from the woman as the pain increased sharply. He watched as she corked the vial of his blood and set it on her desk, which he noticed was devoid of the pictures the other nurse had of her children and husband. Once she was done she turned to him.

"Tsk." She looked him up and down in disgust. "Well grab some tissues and clean yourself up boy. I'll write you a note so you can go home early."

Hunching slightly under her gaze he shuffled over to the sink and washed himself and shove some tissues up his nose to hopefully stop the bleeding. A piece of paper was shoved in his fact as soon as he turned around.

"Hiee!" His scream was muffled by the tissues up his nose, but the nurse still scowled at him in annoyance. He flinched and eyed the woman suspiciously, but took it anyway. He wasn't quite sure what was going on, that woman gave him the shivers and the fact that she just took some of his blood was more than unnerving.

"Go home brat."

Nodding nervously he ignored her mutters as he fled the room. Heading back to the locker room to grab his stuff he wondered briefly how Kurokawa knew the nurse's name when he hadn't seen her before today. He shrugged it off when he reach his destination and proceeded to get dressed in his uniform and grab his bag.

He wondered if Kawahira had any answers to the strange things going on in the past two days. He usually did. Tsuna was fairly certain Kawahira knew everything.

Deciding to talk to him tomorrow since his mother was most likely running around the house cooking and cleaning frantically for their guest this evening. He wouldn't be able to do much, he couldn't cook to save his life, but he could get her what she needed and wipe down the counters and table for her.

No one stopped him from leaving and he didn't see anyone on his way home. It was creepy if Tsuna was being honest, but he'd rather it be mildly creepy than being beaten up again. He thought he caught a glimpse of the strange baby again, but tried not to focus on it. He'd rather pretend he wasn't crazy, thank you very much.

The house was quiet. Almost scarily so. Tsuna gulped and backed up to the door wondering what was wrong. The house was always filled with some kind of noise, whether it was the radio, his mother humming or pots and pans being moved around in the kitchen. It should be even louder since his mother was so excited over a guest. The only time it was silent in the house was when his father left…

Tsuna frowned and found the determination to move forward. Whatever was wrong he needed to help his mom. He slipped out of his shoes and edged his way down the hall stopping every few seconds to listen. He peeked into the living room and found nothing so he moved onto the kitchen.

He paused. There was his mother smiling happily as she was setting down a tray of veggies on the table. She didn't move. It was like she was frozen. Tsuna gulped.

"M-Mom?"

"Sorry brat, she's a little… shall we say indisposed at the moment."

"HIIIIIEEEEEEEEEE." He spun around so fast it made him dizzy and looked at the new nurse sitting calmly on the couch with a glass of water in her perfectly manicured hand. She rubbed her ear a pained look crossing her features momentarily.

"My, that's quite the scream you've got there, nearly broke my glass. Tell me how does a fourteen year old boy get his voice up to such an octave?"

Tsuna opened and closed his mouth not knowing how to answer. He glanced back at his mom and steeled himself.

"W-What did y-you mean in-indisposed?" He voice was painfully weak and his stutter was awful, but Tsuna was honestly terrified. This wasn't like all the times he was cornered by bullies. He thought she was intimidating earlier at the school, but now it was unbearable. This woman's aura felt dark and menacing in a way that made Tsuna want to curl up in a ball and cry. He couldn't do that though; his mother was in danger. He had to do something.

The women smirked. "That's none of your business kid. Look, let's cut to the chase. I'm here for you."

Tsuna cringed at her tone. "W-What?"

She frowned and stood up. "Son of the Young Lion of the Vongola. Honestly, he fooled us for a little while, but I can't believe he thought that stupid false lead would keep us away forever."

"I-I'm sorry, I d-don't…"

"DON'T INTERRUPT ME!"

Tsuna whimpered as fury overcame her face. This wasn't good. It wasn't good at all. He stared his eyes wide as a sinister whip appeared in her hand and she stood.

"I would rather just kill you, but since you came back positive for flames I have to drag you back to base kicking and screaming."

His bag slipped from his hand and he turned around and ran. He wasn't sure what was going on, but if that lady wanted to kidnap him he wasn't going to just stand there with his mother frozen in the other room. He didn't bother trying to get his shoes on and instead dove for the door handle, yanking it open and slamming it behind him. Tsuna took off down the street hearing her heeled steps behind him the entire way. Tears welled up in his eyes as he ran. This couldn't be happening. This had to be some kind of twisted nightmare.

He tried running faster. He couldn't breathe with the tissues still up his nose. He didn't make it far, before he felt a slap to his back. Tsuna tried not to scream as a sharp pain tore through him and he fell from the force of the attacked. He felt his left shoulder dislocate as he hit the ground, and he held back scream. Tsuna had never gotten a serious injury before; sure he got bruises and cuts from his many bullies, but nothing really serious. Tears streamed down his face. He bit his lip until it bled as the same warm liquid leak from the cut across his upper back. Blood was dripping steadily out of his nose when the tissues came out as he hit the ground. A small whimper escaped him. The pain was unbearable. He flinched at the sound of heels clicking to a stop beside him.

She tsked. "What a wimp. I suppose he can't complain that your injured as long as you're alive to use as bait."

Tsuna looked up at her with tear filled eyes; all he saw was a blur of brown and purple. He shook his head trying to clear his tunneling vision. It took all his strength not to scream

"I afraid I can't let you take him." A high pitch voice spoke up behind her.

She spun around to see who the new person was and Tsuna closed his eyes trying to fight back the oncoming unconsciousness, to no avail. He blacked out anyway. Tsuna woke up on his couch. He blinked up at the ceiling wondering if it was all a dream. Did he even leave the house?

"You're awake, good. I popped your shoulder back into place and healed your back and nose so you shouldn't be in pain. Don't worry, the woman ran away as soon as she saw me."

Tsuna glanced toward to his right to find the owner of the high pitched voice and blinked at the familiar baby sitting on the coffee table. He was too tired to let out his usually scream, but the surprise was still there. Was he still dreaming? The baby's large dark eyes were as blank as his expression, but Tsuna sensed that he was amused by the situation for whatever reason.

"Dame-Tsuna when somebody says they've helps you, you thank them." The baby was smirking now.

Tsuna sat up slowly. "How do you know that nickname?"

The child blinked innocently though his words were anything but innocent. "I was told there might be a new recruit in this area. You were one of the potential candidates so naturally I learned everything about you and the other potential's to better understand the situation and I followed you when it was clear you were the one."

"You're the baby from the Kawahira's shop."

"That is correct."

"You were watching the entire time."

It wasn't a question.

"That is correct, Dame-Tsuna."

Tsuna leaned back on the cushioned feeling terribly exhausted. "Why didn't you help sooner?"

"I was judging you."

"Your verdict?"

"Pathetic. Everything that I've found on you was correct. You're clumsy, a crybaby, a bad student, have a low self-esteem, never stand up for yourself, no stamina, no speed, no fighting capabilities at all and you tend to try and run away from your problems instead of facing them head on."

With each accusation Tsuna winced and leaned further back until he was practically becoming one with the couch behind him.

"But there is potential like with any new recruit and with the right training you can become a good, strong member."

Tsuna looked at the strange baby in confusion and a little fear. "Who are you? I-I'm sorry I don't know what's going on."

He reverted back to his usual self now that the shock was wearing off and he was starting to panic. What exactly was going on?! The baby's voice broke through his panicked thoughts and he calmed down somewhat now that he was getting answers.

"My name is Reborn. As for what's going on, that woman toke some of your blood, is that correct?"

Tsuna frowned remembering their confusing first encounter at the school. He nodded slowly.

"It's an older way of testing who has flames or not, but only takes about fifteen minutes and is usually accurate."

Tsuna opened his mouth to ask a question, but Reborn held up his hand sufficiently silencing him.

"Right now is not the time or place to explain the whole situation, but to make it quick I'll say that there are countless dimensions parallel to this one and that woman is a part of a group that is currently gathering power and tipping the balance between these dimensions. I am a part of an organization that is combating them using these flames." He opened his small palm and a yellow flame danced merrily for a minute before he continue. "We named them Dying Will Flames and learned to harness and use these flames with specialized weapons. That woman tested your blood to see if you had these flames. Do you understand so far?"

Tsuna shook his head and Reborn huffed in slight irritation.

"Dame-Tsuna I really don't have time for your uselessness. You apparently tested positive to having flames and so the woman tried to take you back to her dimension for some nefarious plot." Reborn tossed an object at him and Tsuna flailed a bit before finally getting a hold of it. It was a simply silver ring. "That is the generic ring we give all new recruits before they can access their flames."

"Oh." Tsuna looked down at the small silver ring his hands. "Things won't go back to the way they were before will they?"

"No."

"What does it mean to have Dying Will Flames?"

"It means you'll have to come with me to the headquarters so that you can be trained to use them and eventually enter combat with others against people like the women who attacked you."

"I don't have a choice do I?"

"No."

"What about…Mom!"

Tsuna jumped up and ran toward the kitchen. He couldn't believe he forgot about his mother! That was inexcusable. He stopped at the entrance adrenaline suddenly gone as he stared at he still frozen figure. A weight appeared on his shoulder and he glanced at Reborn out of the corner of his eye a silent question in his chocolate orbs.

"She is frozen on a different plane of existence. I can undo the spell, but only after we leave. I could have gone after the woman when she ran, but you were my top priority since you were injured. She no doubt has informed her superiors what had happened and of your existence. We need to hurry and get you to headquarters."

"I can't even say goodbye?"

"…No."

"What will happen to her? Will I ever see her again?"

"You won't be able to come back here. It presents too much of a danger to them, however there will be people here keeping an eye on her for you. Her memory of you will be wiped and she continue living a normal live here in Namimori."

Tears welled up in his eyes, but he refused to cry. When he spoke his voice was choked with emotion.

"I see."

He looked at the ring in his hand again before slipping it on and turning away from his frozen mother.

"Do I need to bring anything?"

"No."

He nodded still holding back tears. "So what's this organization called?"

The baby smirked. "Vongola."

With that Reborn flicked his small hand and a portal appeared in front on them. Tsuna took a deep breath, closed his eyes and took a step forward. When he opened his eyes he was in a bright hallway of a completely different building…

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><p><strong>Yay chapter two done and posted. XD I'll have chapter tree up shortly. I just need to comb through it one more time. By the way if you see any grammar spelling mistakes please tell me so I can fix them. I hope there aren't any with how many times I've edited these darn chapters, but you never know.**

**Edit: I went back to change stupid mistakes after a reviewer pointed a few out. I corrected them before, but didn't save thus the mistakes. Sorry for the inconvenience. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I can't think of any clever way to say I still don't own KHR…**

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><p>Reborn glanced at the new recruit out of the corner of his eye. Dame-Tsuna seemed to be trying very hard to hold back a shriek and not faint. It wasn't surprising. All new recruits had a hard time after they had been ripped, sometimes literally, from their family and home. It seemed like the weight of the situation had fully sunk in and he went deathly pale. Reborn watched with slight fascination as his eyes rolled back and the boy finally fainted. He jumped from his shoulder before the boy crumbled to the ground and was simply grateful Dame-Tsuna managed to hold in that awful scream of his.<p>

He had been watching the boy for several days and had heard it countless times and was genuinely sick of it. He hoped the trainers would be able to beat the nasty habit out of him before everyone went deaf.

A group of people came running over to see what was wrong only to stop short at the site of him. He waved the off telling them to take the kid to the new recruit barracks and toss him in a dorm with an open bed. They nodded quickly and scurried off with Dame-Tsuna, surprise still evident on their faces.

Reborn knew why, it was because he rarely ever went on missions to retrieve recruits. It was almost an insult really when considering his strength. However; the ninth asked for him specifically and who was Reborn to refuse his boss? Reborn tsk and started the long trek to the Ninths office. He had to report his findings, he just hoped that fool Iemitsu wasn't there. He didn't want to tell the man that his son was now a part of the Vongola despite Iemitsu's attempts to keep his family, his son especially, out of it. The idiot would likely blame him and cause a ruckus.

This thought led him to the son in question. He frowned and tugged on his fedora, shadowing his eyes as he walked passed a group of people chatting loudly. Dame-Tsuna was an enigma and mystery that Reborn couldn't solve and that irked him. He was telling the truth when he called the boy all of those names, because he did see those traits or lack of them in the boy during the days he was watching him along with the other potentials. However, despite that the boy still managed to surprise him.

No one, outside of fully trained Vongola members, should have seen him in the shop talking to that infuriating meddler Kawahira. Nor should anyone outside of fully trained Vongola members see him when he had been hanging around the boy after that. He was traveling on a different plane of existence to avoid unnecessary attention drawn to himself. Yet Dame-Tsuna did see him at least three times.

Which didn't match the observations he made of the boy. Which irritated him. Not to mention the fact that he didn't know what flame the boy held. It was not technically something he needed to find out. In fact most of the tests that the Vongola invested in only showed whether or not the person in questions had flames, not what kind. However Reborn prided himself in being able to predict a person's flame and the fact that he couldn't get a read on Dame-Tsuna irritated him even more.

Leon licked his cheek as if to comfort him and he patted his friend on the head while calming himself down. It was unbecoming for him of all people to be getting so riled up over the actions and odd traits of a fourteen year old boy. He sighed inaudibly and continued on his way. There was no point in dwelling on it. Iemitsu was a direct descendent of the Vongola Primo it was more than likely that the oddities surrounding the boy were in fact because of the blood running through his veins. Besides, it wouldn't matter to him anyway since he wasn't going to be involved with the boy any more. He brought Dame-Tsuna here and now the boy would be train to be a good member of the Vongola and possibly join the CEDEF like his father had, but Reborn would not be a part of his life from this point forward.

Despite his thoughts he still couldn't shake the feeling that he was completely wrong in this conclusion and though his gut feeling may not be as strong and the Hyper Intuition of the Vongola Primo it had saved his life more times than he could count. He frowned as he found himself in front of the Vongola Ninths office. He wasn't going to like the results of this meeting, but he raised his hand to knock anyway.

* * *

><p>Tsuna groaned and rolled over on his side when he felt a gentle poke on his cheek.<p>

"Five more minutes." He slurred in a sleepy voice.

"Haha sorry, but I think you should get up now you've been sleeping for an hour or more."

Tsuna frowned wondering why a stranger he didn't know was in his room and opened his eyes slowly only to find himself facing an unfamiliar wall. He blinked. Now that he thought about the mattress he was lying on felt different too, a little firmer than his one at home and the sheets were a little scratcher.

"Oh you must be confused. I know I was when I first woke up here and I knew about it beforehand. Ahaha" The stranger spoke again to his left. "You're in the new recruit…eh I think they call it barracks. It's where all of us newbies live until they train us to become full members of the Vongola."

_New Recruits? Barracks? Vongola? _

Tsuna's mind spun frantically as he tried to digest this information. Then it all hit him. The memories of what happened. He sat up slowly trying to get his breathing under control. It was no use…

"HHHHIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE…"

His scream echoed throughout the room and most likely the entire building before be brutally cut off by a fist to the head. Tsuna fell to the floor clutching his head while an angry silverette stood above him cursing about loud noises and pathetic roommates. The unruffled voice of a black haired boy tried to calm the angry one down as Tsuna regained his bearings.

He pushed himself into a sitting position and looked at the two boy's standing in front of him. The one who hit him had silver hair that reached pasted his ears, punk style of clothing and his angry scowl reminded the smaller boy of the bullies that picked on him. He winced and looked at the other boy. This one was obviously the owner of the voice that woke him up. He was tall with black hair and calming brown eyes that glittered in amusement at the ranting of the other boy.

Tsuna blinked wondering what he should do. The silver haired boy looked like he was ready to punch the black hair one.

"Uh, sorry for screaming. I j-just remembered wh-what happened. M-My names Sawada Tsunayoshi, b-but everyone j-just calls me Tsuna." He flinched when the silver haired boy turned his glare on him, but the other boy just scoffed and walked over to the other side of the room where a bunk bed jutted out from the wall.

"Ahaha Sorry about him. He's Gokudera Hayato and my names Yamamoto Takashi. It's nice to meet you!"

Tsuna smiled shyly at the boy's large grin and they both ignored Gokudera's shout to 'not go giving his name out to everybody and their mother' though Tsuna did wince a little at his tone.

Yamamoto smiled in understanding. "Don't worry about him he's always grumpy, but he has a good heart."

This comment cause Gokudera to spew out a bunch of curses mingled with the occasional 'Baseball Idiot' which confused Tsuna, but he smiled at Yamamoto all the same. He was glad that there was at least one non-scary person here and Yamamoto seemed very nice.

"S-so where exactly am I?" He questioned softly.

"Stupid, that baseball idiot already told you!" shouted Gokudera causing Tsuna to flinch again.

Yamamoto waved his hands in the air in a calming manner.

"Ma ma, calm down Gokudera. Tsuna was half asleep when I told him that, besides he's new here we should treat him nicely." He grinned before turning to Tsuna. "Well you're in the new recruit barracks. The three of us will be sharing a room here until we finish training."

Tsuna blinked and paled. "Training for what?"

"Who the hell brought you in?! Did they not tell you anything or are you a complete idiot!?"

Tsuna jerked back at the sound of Gokudera's shout, and looked at his lap while ringing his hands. His voice was soft and apologetic. "Sorry, I just…well I'm a little c-confused right now. Everything h-happened so fast and Reborn d-did tell me s-some things, b-but I didn't really u-understand. I think h-he did say s-something about c-combat, but I just well I…."

He trailed off, not know how to say that he didn't like fighting and not sound weak and useless to them. He missed the surprised and slightly regretful look that crossed Gokudera's face and the sharp look that Yamamoto sent the silverette. Yamamoto's smiled was regained a second later and he flopped down next to the smaller boy.

"Don't worry Tsuna you just got here right? No one's expecting you to know everything or even feel comfortable just yet. Gokudera's just a grump like I said earlier and tends to forget that not everyone knows as much or is as smart as him." He smiled when Tsuna lifted his head and peered up at him doubtfully. "I'll start with the basics. You know about Dying Will Flames right?"

Tsuna nodded slightly. He explain what happened up until he had fainted. "R-Reborn said s-something about flames and u-using them t-to f-fight…"

He glanced between the two boys as they gaped at him in shock wondering if he did or said something wrong.

"I didn't think Reborn would stoop to recruiting missions." Gokudera said bluntly.

"Ahaha Wow Tsuna, that's amazing! Reborn is a _very_ powerful member of the Vongola. You must be pretty special for him to recruit you himself."

Tsuna blushed slightly at Yamamoto's complement and disagreed with him quietly. He was defiantly nothing special. Gokudera seemed to be in shock that someone so important had to go on a recruiting mission. Tsuna wonder who exactly Reborn was to garner that reaction.

Yamamoto laughed off his arguments and proceeded to explain or at least tried too. "Well you see Dying Will Flames are manifestations of power. They are literally flames, but there are different kinds with different attributes. There are seven types of flames people can have, Rain, Storm, Lightning, Mist, Sun, Cloud and Sky. Mine's rain by the way. Anyway I wasn't really listening, but the rings and sometimes other items we use reacts to the flames and activates, I guess, causing…."

"Would you shut-up!" Gokudera had apparently snapped out of his shock and was looking angrier than ever. "You're just going to confuse him further with your wish-washy explanation!"

"Eh? Really? Tsuna did my explanation confuse you?"

The look on Tsuna's face was all the answer they needed. Yamamoto laughed and apologized and Gokudera, surprisingly, started to explain.

"Okay so first and for most do you know what type of flames you have?" When Tsuna shook his head, he nodded. "That's understandable. Most new recruits don't unless they have family here and even then there have been cases where there are different flames in the same family. Okay so each flame is a different color. For example, blue is for Rain flames, red is for Storm, green is for Lightning, indigo is for Mist, yellow is for Sun, purple is for cloud, and orange is for Sky." He took a deep breath and continued on in his explanation. Tsuna leaned forward trying to focus on his words and not zone out like he did in school. He remembered Reborn's flames being yellow and tugged that fact away for later.

"Now as for what the Dying Will Flames are, Baseball idiot over there had it wrong, they're not manifestations of power they are pure power simple as that. They are a high density for of energy that comes from a person's life force. Each flame has its own characteristic. Understand?"

Tsuna nodded slowly as the new information started to make sense.

"Good. Not everyone has Dying Will Flames and even those who do could live their entire life without realizing it because aside from a few rare cases these flames cannot be called forth on one's own without major training and even them it's extremely difficult. The different organizations do their best to search our flames users, but mistakes happen." He paused for another breathe. "Anyway the rings can draw forth the flames and allow the owner to control and use them to fight if the person in question has the resolve. If you cannot muster the resolve to fight or heal in the case of some sun flames users then the rings are useless and you're as good as dead, but that's beside the point. The Vongola and other organizations like us produce these rings, and even customize them for the more powerful members."

He flashed his hand in front of Tsuna showing off a silver ring with a red stripe down the middle. "The one you're wearing is a generic ring that can channel any flame, though not very well and you can't really use it in battle because it can't handle too much. It's mostly used for the new recruits to learn to draw on their flames. Once you're able to channel your flame you're given a new ring that is made for whatever type of flame you have. Mine is Storm, so that's why my ring has a red stripe. The Baseball Idiot over there has a blue strip representing his rain flames. That should be good for based knowledge. Any questions?"

Tsuna looked down at the ring on his hand. "So, there is no way of knowing what my flame is right now?"

"I suppose you can go get the test done over in the infirmary. I think Giannini or his father created a mechanism to find-out recently, but its tradition around here to discover it yourself when you manage to call it forth."

"…I see." Tsuna smiled up at Gokudera. "Thank you, Gokudera-san you're a great teacher."

Gokudera turned his head away blushing at the bright smile from the smaller boy as Yamamoto laughed. Yamamoto stood and helped Tsuna to his feet.

"Ahaha now everything makes sense. Thanks Gokudera! Now I think we should…"

He was cut off by the sound of a knock. Three eyes turned to the door as it opened slowly.

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><p>Reborn stepped into the room and his eyes were immediately drawn to the stacks of paper work on the desk. He eyed them warily for a moment before turning his attention to his boss standing by the window.<p>

"Greetings Ninth, I've delivered your letter to Kawahira and brought the boy to headquarters as you instructed. There was a Millefiore member present and searching for Iemitsu's son."

The elderly man nodded and Reborn to the incentive to give the man a full report leaving out no details. After he was done the ninth sighed and move slowly over to the couch to sit. For a long moment nothing was said until Timoteo broke the silence.

"Reborn you are aware of my current lack of an heir, correct?"

Reborn though back to the deaths of all of the man's son's and nodded slowing already dreading where this was going.

"Xanxus is not fit for the job and Iemitsu is determined to stay head of the CEDEF. My sons are dead Reborn and I am an old man. I need an heir."

"Surely there must be someone else? I've told you all of the boy's failings."

The older man shook his head. "You've also told me about several interesting things about him and he is a direct decedent of the Vongola Primo. Who better to be the Vongola Decimo?"

"The boy has some oddities about him for sure, but are you certain Ninth? He is only fourteen years old? Not to mention the fact that we don't even know if he has a sky flame."

"Those are valid reasons, but our enemies grow in power everyday while I only weaken. We need to act. Perhaps we can come to an agreement? Watch the boy for me. Observe his actions and when he ignites his flame then come to me immediately. If it is sky then we will have another talk though I have no doubt it will be since his father also has sky flame. If it is not then we'll have to keep searching. Trust me Reborn I do not want a child to have to carry this burden much less Iemitsu's only son. He had already asked me to keep his family out of this business." Timoteo sighed and rubbed his forehead.

Reborn tugged on his fedora. "Alright Ninth. I understand the weight of this situation. I will not fail you."

Timotoe smiled at the man in a baby's guise then stood up. "Well let's go see this young man. I haven't met Iemitsu's son, but he goes on about the boy as if he could walk on water." He chuckled and Reborn smirked.

"You just want to get out of doing paper work."

"Humor an old man, would you?"

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><p><strong>Okay, so chapter three didn't have much changes so if you get <strong>**Déjà vu****than that's probably it. I'm going to get back to the last two chapters now, but I might upload chapter four later today depending on what kind-of progress I make. *crosses fingers***

**Edit: Holly Crap a review already! I was just about to post this chapter when I saw that!**

**Thank you _crimsonarrows_ for the review! I just looked back at the chapter and realized I corrected those mistakes, but didn't save them before I uploaded :/. I'm so smart *Sarcasm*. Anywho, I may continue the original at a later date, but I want to focus on this one right now. Thank you again for the review. :) **


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Nope**

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><p>Timoteo glanced at his smaller companion; it was amusing to see the always composed Arcobaleno get upset over a fourteen year old boy. He could understand why after listening to his report, but it was still amusing all the same. Reborn prided himself on knowing everything about everyone for him to find a person, a child of all things, he couldn't figure out made Timoteo want to laugh. He wouldn't of course. It wouldn't be proper for a boss to laugh at his subordinates' distress even if the subordinate in question was a good friend.<p>

He waved at the people they passed as they bowed in respect. He smiled and gazed at all of them fondly. He truly loved the Vongola. It was a shining beacon in the ever growing darkness. With missions completed, worlds save, and new recruits coming in nearly everyday it made him wonder if he was making the right choice in forcing a young boy to become the next boss. Yet even with all of the good being done by his subordinates he still couldn't shake the feeling that danger was lurking just around the corner. He couldn't help feeling that these peaceful days would be ending and their enemies were mounting in power while despite appearances the Vongola were getting weaker. He blamed himself for this.

Every time he turned around the recruits were getting younger and he had to extend the training period because he did not want to send children into battle. Yet here he was talking about the future of a young boy who just lost everything, knowing for a fact that becoming the Vongola Decimo would require him to fight and soon.

He had no choice in the matter. The Vongola came first. The good of all the dimensions came first. It was already known that their enemies were not above using children. Just the other day his lightning guardian came back with footage from and abandoned laboratory. It showed brutal experimentation done on children, some no older than three. He didn't want to stoop that low, but he was getting desperate. They needed someone strong to lead the Vongola. Perhaps Tsunayoshi, a decedent of the Vongola Primo, would be that leader. He didn't have a doubt that the boy had sky flame Reborn's inability to get a fix on him proved that. Sky flames users were a strange bunch. Hopefully, Reborn could train him to be worthy of being a boss.

He could only hope he made the right choice.

They exited the main building and crossed the courtyard to the new recruit barrack and asked the lady at the front desk where they would find the younger Sawada. She told the room number and they continued on their way passing a few other new recruit as well. Timoteo almost paused in his step when they passed three teenagers; the one in the middle had the oddest hairstyle. It looked like a pineapple, but that wasn't what caught his attention. It was the aura that boy held. He forced himself not to react, as the children exited through the front doors.

"Reborn."

"I know."

He nodded knowing that Reborn would keep an eye on the boy for him and report any oddities.

They climbed the stairs to the third story and found room 327 without any other problems. Timoteo hesitated slightly before knocking and opening the door. There was no turning back now. He had made his choice.

He paused and allowed himself to observe the room before looking at the three boys. It was boxed shaped, but not small. He had wanted all the room to be a comfortable size for the occupants since most had been taken, sometimes forcefully, from their family and home. On the left from the door was a bunk bed jutting out from the wall their sheets neatly folded. In the space between the bunk and the wall was a tall dresser. The right wall was situated in the same manner, but instead of a dresser there was a door for a small closet. The wall across from the door had a large window seat with a view of the forest behind the Vongola Manor with drawers for extra storage. In the middle of the room was a low table were the roommates could sit together while playing games or doing homework. There were four light blue cushions total for them to sit on at the table. The carpet was a light tan and the walls were white. The comforters were the same blue as the cushions on the floor, the sheets and pillows were white.

After noticing all of this his eyes landed on the three boys by the bunks to the right of the door. The silver hair, green-gray eyes and punk clothing were a dead giveaway to the first boy's identity. Gokudera Hayato had only been here for little over a month and had already earned the name Smokin' Bomb Hayato due to his choice of weapons and known temper. Though the teachers hated him for his unruly attitude they had emitted quietly to him that the boy was a genius in his own right. He didn't know the boy's sister personally, but the young women had made a name for herself through her cooking and hadn't failed a mission for him yet. He had the storm flame and Timoteo expected the boy would flourish as soon as he found something to fight for and got control of his temper.

The black haired boy standing next to Hayato was another he recognized. Yamamoto Takashi looked exactly like his father when he was young and from the report had a similar personality as well. He was glad the swordsman was doing well for himself even though he had quit the Vongola years ago. He was glad the man had let his son come to them to train especially considering the excellent reports from the boy. He may not be the brightest as far as book knowledge goes, but he was a natural fighter. Timoteo knew the boy would become a strong swordsman like his father some day and looked forward to it.

Finally he turned his gaze upon the smallest boy among the three and almost raised his eyebrow in surprise. The boy didn't look a thing like his father; instead, it was like looking at a younger Giotto with brown hair and eyes. Reborn had told him of the strange resemblance, but he didn't realize how close it was. He watched at the boys shifted nervously. Everything about him shouted out painful shyness and lack of confidence, yet despite that Timoteo was pleasantly surprised when it was the boy that broke the silence first.

"Umm, H-hello Re-Reborn. Is t-there something you n-needed? Who's y-your companion?"

Tsunayoshi's large innocent eyes flittered between Reborn and himself as he spoke and Timoteo felt a pang in his heart. Because of him those eyes wouldn't remain innocent for long. He pushed those thoughts away and instead chuckled as Gokudera splutter at Tsunayoshi's lack of knowledge and Yamamoto laughed.

"Dame-Tsuna…" Reborn looked like he was going to scold the boy, but Timoteo cut him off.

"Hello, Sawada Tsunayoshi. It's a pleasure to meet you. My name Timoteo, however most know me as the Vongola Nono, or the Ninth boss of the Vongola."

He leaned on his scepter and he watched the boy blink in surprise then went pale. Gokudera bowed in respect. Yamamoto stood and bowed as well, nudging Tsunayoshi to do the same. He got the hint and stood up clumsily and gave a sloppy bow. Timoteo found it endearing, but he could tell both Reborn and Gokudera were irritated.

"Uh I…its n-nice t-to meet you, s-sir." He fidgeted and Timoteo saw Reborn twitch in annoyance.

"You're probably wondering why I'm here. I'm sorry to surprise you, but I just wanted to see the son of one of my most trusted advisers and leader of the CEDEF. I also heard that you had a rather harrowing experience with a Millefiore member before Reborn managed to save you. How are you feeling?"

When the boy shook his head he smiled. Reborn had shot his a look. Obviously he didn't appreciate that his healing skills were questioned, though Timoteo meant no harm by it.

"May I see your hand for a moment?"

The boy nodded shying and held out his hand. Timoteo took it and examine it before sending a bit of his own flames through his own fingers. Tsuna jerked slightly and glanced around making him laugh internally. He felt the hum of Tsuna's flames. It was a soothing warmth that had a hint of steel. Looking over the boy's form he wondered what kind of weapon could possibly work with him. Ironically the first one that came to mind was gloves…

He let go of the boys hand and smiled at the boys in a grandfatherly way. "I expect great things from all of you, is that understood, Gokudera Hayato and Yamamoto Takashi?"

The two taller boys nodded looking very proud at the fact that they were addressed directly by him and he held back a chuckle. He nodded to them and turned to leave.

"Tsuna."

He froze and looked back at the shy boy, who had nearly shouted in a high voice. He had his eyes shut and his hands balled into fists at his sides. The boy opened his eyes and for a moment Timoteo thought he saw a flash of orange.

"Please call me Tsuna." His voice was softer than before and Timoteo smiled his face relaxing in a gentle expression.

"Alright, if that's what you want, Tsuna."

The smiled received in returned was blindingly happy for such a simple thing and Timoteo felt his heart throb painfully. If only Tsuna knew what he was planning for him. He wouldn't smile as kindly; he knew that for a fact. He forced himself to smile at those trusting eye and opened the door.

"Goodbye, Tsuna, Gokudera, Yamamoto."

He received loud goodbye's in return from the taller too and a quiet 'Goodbye sir.' from Tsuna. Once the door was shut he sighed heavily and leaned on his scepter more slouching in a way that was unbefitting of a Vongola boss.

"Ninth?"

He started walking slowly down the hallway when Reborn's worried voice cut through his guilty haze.

"I've made my decision Reborn. It's for the good of the Vongola and all the dimension's we protect. The boy is not confident and painfully shy. It's obvious that he hasn't had any friends and has a low opinion of himself, but he has potential. His flames are strong, he just need the motivation to activate them. Watch him until his flames ignite then we'll talk about how to go about training him along with any other observations you noticed about him."

"Yes, sir."

If Reborn noticed the slight pain in Timoteos' voice he didn't say anything.

* * *

><p>Tsuna swallowed thickly when the elderly man left. He wasn't sure what made him ask the man to call him by his nickname. He really liked the old man and could tell he was a good person. It just felt wrong to be called Tsunayoshi by someone who looks like a kind grandfather and he couldn't help himself. He half expected to be scolded, but the man smiled and agreed. He wondered if his grandfather was like that. His wished he knew him to find out, but both his mother's parents had died in a plane crash when she was a teenager and he knew next to nothing about his father, much less his father's parents.<p>

This thought led him to another, less than enjoyable thought. His father, from what the Ninth said, was here. He was a member of the Vongola and leader of the CEDEF whatever that was. Was that why he left and never came back? Leaving his mother and him alone? Another thought came to him. Was the reason his mother never spoke of him or acknowledged his existence because she didn't remember him? When he was younger he had often wondered why his mother didn't talk about him like she used to and when he'd asked she'd act like she didn't understand or simply didn't hear. The lack of pictures, or any of his possessions suddenly made sense.

This realization brought on a mountain of guilt and a mix of other feelings he couldn't untangle. He had come to resent his father over the years for leaving them, but he must have done it to protect them. Just like he did today, by leaving his mother and home behind to join the Vongola. He felt tears well in his eyes.

"Tsuna? You've been standing there staring intently at the door for a while now. Are you okay?"

Yamamoto's worried voice cut through his thoughts and he spun around with wide eyes as tears slipped down his cheeks.

"Ah Yamamoto-san! S-sorry! I, uh, w well…it's c-complicated." His voice dropped to a whisper at the end.

He scrubbed at his cheeks not wanting the two of them to think he was a crybaby. Gokudera was a little scary, but he still liked the both of them and he didn't want to burden them with his worries.

Yamamoto frowned and shared a look with Gokudera who was trying not to look worried. He stepped forward and caught Tsuna's arms gently stopping him form scrubbing his face roughly.

"Hey, what's wrong?" He smiled encouragingly when Tsuna looked up at him in surprise.

Tsuna looked down again. "It's n-nothing."

"It's obviously not nothing if you're crying about it! Stop being a wimp!" Gokudera's annoyed tone make Tsuna jump and cringe.

"Hiieee!"

"Ahaha Gokudera don't be mean." Yamamoto smiled at the silverette behind him before turning back to Tsuna. "He's right you know. I understand if you don't want to talk about it we are after all strangers. But we're also roommates now and I think we should get along. If you want to talk about it later then let us know and I'm sure both Gokudera and I will be willing to listen."

Tsuna gave a small nod and smiled slightly at the two of them. "Thanks. I…I'm not really…um…"

"Haha don't worry about Tsuna. Just tell us when you're ready."

Yamamoto grinned and Gokudera tsked and looked away mutter about how the Baseball Idiot shouldn't decide things for him. Tsuna's smile widened.

"Oh yeah, please don't call me Yamamoto-san. Haha. That's my father! Just call me Takashi!"

"Eh?! I couldn't do that!"

"Hahaha why not?"

It was only after Yamamoto suggested that they show him around and they were half way down the hall did Tsuna realize that he wasn't upset anymore. He had a bad habit of stewing over things and making himself more upset the longer he thought about it and being unable to stop thinking about it. He would be distressed for hour's sometimes even days. But with a few words and a promise to listen he was actually happy again.

He also realized that his was the first time he was happy to be around other people his own age. He smiled and glanced at his new roommates while they argued over something trivial. He had left his home and mother behind and he might not be able to see either again, but right now he was happy. The two of them were almost like…friends. His smile brightened. In just a few hours of being here, he had friends his own age! Kawahira would be proud of him.

"What are you smiling about?!"

"Hieee! S-sorry Gokudera-san!"

"What the hell is this 'san' bull?! Your calling the Baseball Idiot just Yamamoto now, but still using 'san' with me?!"

"S-sorry!"

"Haha. Is Gokudera jealous?"

"Of that weakling?! Hell no!"

"Hiieeee!"

Some of the other people passing by winced and shot Tsuna nasty looks while rubbing their ears. Tsuna went red with embarrassment and hung his head, because of that he didn't see those same recruits go pale and hurry away when they saw Gokudera's glare.

* * *

><p>"So, we're in the dorms right now. Our room number is 327, we're on the third floor. Elevators over there and stairs through that door to the right. Make sure to remember our room number, 'cause all the floors look the same. Haha" Yamamoto grinned at the shorter boy. "The cafeteria in on the first floor along with the store and the front desk. I think there's also a lounge area and a game room for us, but I haven't been there yet."<p>

They made their way down the first floor and Yamamoto pointed out the different places along with introducing Tsuna to the receptionist who looked about ready to leap over the desk and pinch his cheeks while cooing. It was funny seeing the brunette make a valiant attempt at being a tomato. He really hoped Gokudera wouldn't scare him off like his did the rest of his roommates.

"Haha. Anyway the store has a bunch of useful stuff including cloths, school supplies, snacks, and other stuff. If you can't find what you want there there's always mail order. That's where Gokudera gets his jewelry and punk cloths so he can look cool!"

"Screw you!"

He ignored Gokudera's interruption and continued. "Oh and don't worry about money, the Vongola gives us a weekly allowance. It's nothing huge, but it's not shabby either. When we become full members we get paid more depending on the amount and type of missions we take. Okay, let's move onto the school building!"

"School?"

Yamamoto smiled reassuringly when he saw Tsuna looking nervous.

"Yup. Since a lot of the new recruits are younger the Ninth set up some classes to continue our education."

"W-what are the classes?"

Yamamoto opened his mouth to reply, but Gokudera beat him to it much too his surprise.

"The classes are separated by floors and age groups. For core classes like math, science, history, and language we are separated by age and floor so that the amount of students in each class isn't too much for the teacher to handle. However, for other things it's different. For example Physical Training is just separated by floors."

"Eh?! We'll still be taking normal classes?"

Gokudera smirked. "Yeah, back in the day when the new recruits were older, they didn't have them, but now that we're all so young the Ninth decided we needed to continue our education as well. Though the classes themselves only teach the basic practical things instead of going into depth. History is more focused on the history of the Vongola. There are other classes too. This morning we had math, language and a 'Know your Enemies' or KYE for short that is solely based on the history and tactics as well as weapons of the Millefiore."

Yamamoto make a mental note to help him out in classes since Tsuna seemed to fold into himself at the thought of continuing normal classes. Or he could simply heckle Gokudera enough to get help for Tsuna. He wasn't all that good at school himself.

"Millefiore?"

"They're the organization the Vongola is fighting against."

After digesting the fact that they still had to go to school Tsuna still seemed floored that they got an allowance. Gokudera saw that and explained that though the Vongola's main objective was to fight the Millefiore, they couldn't do that if they were dirt poor. In order to keep up the fight against evil the Vongola became business oriented and took other jobs, such as body guarding or infiltration and much more in different dimensions in order to pay the bills. Since there were countless dimensions the Vongola became extremely rich and powerful. Which was why they could afford to give an allowance to the new recruits.

Yamamoto smiled and told Tsuna that there wasn't one dimension were the Vongola wasn't known. Tsuna looked amazed at that fact making Yamamoto's smile widen.

Unfortunately after that it seemed as though Gokudera had filled his quota of interacting in one day and he clammed up immediately after that conversation. Folding his arms across his chest and looking decidedly surly. Yamamoto was just impressed he was not only still walking with them, but had interacted with Tsuna as well explained thing to him even if it was only for a little bit. They made it over to the school building and Yamamoto took over the tour once again.

"Okay, so here's the school building! I'll show you our classroom and the training rooms then we can go eat!"

Yamamoto pushed Tsuna forward keeping a steady chatter going about what the classes were like and the teachers who taught them. When they swung by the trainings rooms Yamamoto hurried them back out of the first one before Hibari noticed them and moved onto the next one explain the titanium enforced walls and other flame resistant features his dad had told him about before heading back to the dorms for dinner.

He wasn't sure how well it'd go considering Gokudera usually sat separately. Actually this was the most they interacted since the first day when the silverette tried to blow him up for daring to be slotted as his roommate. He hoped this would be a normal thing with Tsuna around. He looked like he could use some friends.

The cafeteria ladies were just as taken with Tsuna as the receptionist and piled his plate high despite his weak protests. Yamamoto just laughed as Tsuna spluttered. He noticed even Gokudera was amused and hoped that was a good sign dinner would go smoothly.

His smiled wavered, however, when Sasagawa Ryohei dropped down next to Tsuna as soon as they sat down at a table. He liked the other teen, they shared some sports stories when they talked every once in a while, but he could rile Gokudera up quickly. Not to mention the fact that Tsuna didn't seem to be very good with new people or people in general. He flinched whenever Gokudera shouted and the silverette wasn't nearly as loud as Sasagawa.

"YOU'RE NEW RIGHT? WANT TO JOIN MY BOXING CLUB?! TOO THE EXTREME!?"

Yamamoto tried holding back a laugh at the deer in headlights look Tsuna adopted with difficulty. Deciding to save his new roommate he jump in quickly before Sasagawa could continue to try and convince him or Gokudera could explode.

"Haha. Sasagawa you don't have a boxing club here. Oh by the way Tsuna, this is Sasagawa Ryohei. He likes boxing."

"N-nice to meet y-you. I'm Sawada T-Tsunayoshi. J-Just call me T-Tsuna. " Tsuna stuttered out still looking rather freaked out.

Yamamoto was simply glad Gokudera hadn't pulled his dynamite out yet. That would really freak Tsuna out.

"OH YEAH! I FORGOT! NICE TO MEET YOU TSUNA! JUST CALL ME ONII-SAN!"

Yamamoto broke out laughing. Of course the temporary peace was broken when Gokudera finally blew his top and got into an argument with Sasagawa over loudness and imposing on other people. Despite his and Tsuna's best effort they went at it for a while, but luckily no dynamite was taken out.

The rest of dinner when alright after the two finally started eating though they got a few annoyed looks as their argument continued off and on with little effort from him to stop them once Tsuna got semi-used to it. He doubted Tsuna even realized Sasagawa manage to get him to call him brother by the end of the evening. Yamamoto didn't call attention to it since Sasagawa look thrilled. He had been trying to get the younger kids to call him that, but so far only his sister did.

They swung by the store to get some school supplies and toiletries for Tsuna before heading back up to their room after the receptionist tracked them down and told them she had gotten someone to get some cloths for Tsuna while they were out and about. It was getting late so Yamamoto suggested getting some sleep since Tsuna looked he was dead on his feet after such a trying day. He didn't say it that way, but he knew Gokudera got the hint judging by his quick glance at Tsuna's dropping eyes.

Yamamoto grinned as he climbed into bed. He was glad Tsuna had shown up. It was getting a little lonely around here.

* * *

><p>Later that night after all was said in done Tsuna curled up and smiled glad that he had met the other two boys. They had shown him so much without being asked. This place was huge and they had only walked around the new recruit section of the Vongola according to Yamamoto. The people he met were nice too, though the lady at the front desk and the cafeteria lady's scared him a little. He didn't quite know what to think of Onii-san at first, but he turned out to be pretty nice even if he was very loud and tended to get in even louder fights with Gokudera.<p>

By the time they finished dinner it was getting late and Tsuna was tired, but he didn't say anything just in case his roommates wanted to stay up late. He was grateful when Yamamoto suggested going to bed since they had school tomorrow though he tried not to show how eager he was just in case they got offended. He really wanted them to be friends and didn't want to ruin it over something small. He stared up at the bunk above him silently for a few minutes after they turned out the lights. Yamamoto was above him while Gokudera had claimed the bottom bunk on the other side of the room. In the darkness his thoughts started heading back to his early revelation. He wondered if the other two would even care. Yamamoto said he'd listen, but so did a lot of people. The previous times he tried to share his feelings or thoughts they were rebuffed and made fun of. He didn't try after the first failure.

He closed his eyes and sighed. It was now or never.

"My father."

Neither of the other two boys replied, but he could tell they were listening.

"I was crying because all this time I had been resenting my father for leaving my mom and me he had been here. I realized that he had left to protect us. And…well I don't know how I feel about that. I want to still resent him, but that'd be hypocritical since I just did the same thing to my mother. I just…I don't know."

"I'm sorry I don't really know how that feels. My dad used to be part of the Vongola, but he left when my mom died in order to take care of me. I think that maybe you should talk to you dad about it. You know to set the record straight."

Tsuna smiled slightly at Yamamoto's advice. He was right he should talk to his dad.

"Tsk, what I want to know if why you remember him at all. The Vongola is one of the few organizations that allows its members to have families outside of it without making them wipe their memories, but it sounds like you dad meant to leave you two for good. When that happens anyone and everyone who came in contact or might know him will have their memory wiped. No exceptions."

The three of them remain quiet for a long time after that wondering about the implications. Tsuna tried to remember anything that could give him a clue as to why his memory wasn't wiped to no avail.

"If the Vongola allows families outside of the organization, why did my father decided to leave?" Tsuna questioned softly his resentment rearing its ugly head again.

"Sometimes, it becomes too dangerous." Yamamoto answered, just as softly. "I remember many times when my father had to defend me from people trying to hurt us. It got scary sometimes and we had to move often. You should really talk to your dad and listen to his side of the story."

He fell silent for a moment. "In any case, I'm glad you told us Tsuna. It's good to get things off your chest, right Gokudera?"

"Tsk, whatever it's not like I care."

"Haha, you're so mean."

Tsuna smiled sleepily as they bickered back and forth for a while before they eventually fell silent as they drifted off to sleep. Tsuna stared out the window at the night sky for a while after his mind spinning with all of the information he receive today. Too much had happened in a small period of time. He couldn't process all of it. He felt mentally, emotionally and physically exhausted. With a sigh turn turned to face the wall and drifted to sleep as well.

* * *

><p>Iemitsu's whole world suddenly came to a stop as the Ninth explained the situation to him.<p>

"WHAT?! MY SON IS HERE?!"

* * *

><p><strong>I finally got the fight between Lancia and Tsuna done! I swear I had the worst time with that one. I'm still not particularly happy with it, but I finished it at least. Now to move onto finishing the Mukuro fight and end the arc. Yay! So, close yet so far. Also a general thanks to everyone who pointed out grammarspelling issues. I usually go back and edit chapters several times even after they're posted, so it was really nice to get some feedback on what I should be looking for. **

**Reviews~ So many already! XD I feel so loved!**

**_crimsonarrows~_ Thank you so much for your help! I really appreciate it! I normally have to read through the chapter several times to catch those stupid mistakes. Thanks! 3**

**_Aliaissa~_ Thank you for pointing out that super embarrassing mistake. That was a great way to start out the new version. XD I hope you guys think this one is better too! As far as pairings...uh well I don't have any planned right now. I guess we'll just have to see it that subplot would work out. Tanks again for the reviews! :D**

**_jenjen14~_ Yay, I'm glad you liked reading it! Thanks for the review!**

**_Animeseris~_ Thanks for the review! yeah there are quite a few changes though some of them are small. Yes, it is my firm belief that paperwork is the root of all evil. So I don't blame Timoteo for trying to escape it. XD**

**_Lakastri~_ thanks for the review! Yup, that was one of my goals with the rewrite. I wanted to go a little bit slower. Not at a snails pace, but slow enough to give more time for character interaction and training.**

**_lovelydragonfly~_ I updated! XD Thanks for the review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I have a twenty in my wallet right now, you think that'll be enough to buy khr? Nah, I didn't think so either.**

* * *

><p>Tsuna was a nervous wreck come morning. He was worried about the classes Yamamoto and Gokudera told him about. He was worried about seeing his father. He was worried about training. About fighting. He was worried about how worried he was as well. Yamamoto tried to calm him down to no avail. It got to the point where Gokudera yelled at him telling him to shut-up and calm down or he'd blow him up.<p>

Needless to say Tsuna calmed down after that. He was too scared to worry anymore. Yamamoto just laughed.

He was surprise when there were cloths that actually fit him in the closet. He knew the receptionist had said she got someone to bring clothes up, but he didn't think that they'd be so efficient about it. Pajama was one thing you could just pick a size and it'd usually fit, a whole new wardrobe was insane. Tsuna wondered how exactly they knew his exact size, but decided for his own sanity he wouldn't dwell on it. There were some normal jeans, cargo pants, a plethora of tee-shirts, and a couple of jackets. He even had a couple of pairs of tennis shoes! What caught his attention, however, was the black suit. He glanced at Yamamoto and Gokudera's portion of the closet and noticed they had one to.

He decided to ask Yamamoto later since he had already left to go to the bathroom and brush his teeth with Gokudera. He quickly pulled on some jeans and a white tee-shirt, the orange and white hoody and a pair of orange and white tennis shoes. He grabbed a pencil and notebook for class and his new toothbrush before darting down the hall to where Yamamoto told him was the bathroom. He wasn't paying any attention to his surroundings so when someone exited their room he ran strait into them.

"Hieee! Sorry!"

"Kufufu, Look Ken, Chikusa it's a little orange mouse."

Tsuna looked up at the person he ran into in surprise. He was taller than Tsuna, though most people were, with blue hair style oddly and sharp eyes. He couldn't quite figure why the style seemed familiar, but it did. His presence, however, made Tsuna shiver in fear. It took Tsuna a moment to realize what the other boy said.

"M-Mouse!?"

"He's even squeaking, Mukuro-sama." The dry observation came from another boy standing next to the scary boy.

"Whatever, just get out of the way, idiot!" A blond haired boy shout at him.

"Hiiee!" Tsuna wasted no time in running the rest of the way down the hallway and into the bathroom slamming the door behind him.

The boy's already in the bathroom jumped in surprise. Tsuna leaned against the door for a minute trying to catch his breath. Something wasn't right about the boy he just ran into. He didn't even do anything and yet his presence made Tsuna shudder. He heard the other boys ask if he was okay. Yamamoto put his hand on his shoulder, but he could only think of one thing. He finally remembered what the scary boy's hair style reminded him of.

"P-Pineapple."

There was a pause, where the other new recruits tried to put together what in the world he meant before one guy burst out laughing.

"Oh! He met Mukuro!"

There were chuckles and shudders from the rest of the crowd and they went back to getting ready for class. Yamamoto laughed and patted him on the shoulder.

"Don't worry Tsuna. Mukuro scares everyone, well accept for Hibari, but that's a different matter altogether. Come one Gokudera already left already we should hurry if we want to eat with him."

Tsuna smiled shakily at him and allow the taller boy to lead him towards the sinks. They exited the bathroom and made their way down the stairs. Tsuna only tripped once and even then Yamamoto caught him before he rolled down the steps. Tsuna was embarrassed, but Yamamoto laughed it off like he seemed to do about most things.

After they had gone through the line to get some breakfast Tsuna was bright red from all of the ladies comments about him. They apparently found him adorable and gave him twice as much food as the rest of the recruits. He tried to refuse, but his words fell on deaf ears like always. Yamamoto and the other people in the line chuckled the entire way at his distress.

Tsuna was thankful when they started looking for Gokudera in the vast room. He glanced around. It was way more crowded than last night. He frowned, most of them didn't look much older than him, and some looked even younger! The oldest people he saw in the room were a small group of adult's who didn't look a day passed thirty. He knew Yamamoto and Gokudera mention something about the recruits being younger, but this seemed kind-of ridiculous.

"Uh, Yamamoto? Are all new recruits so young?"

Yamamoto blinked in surprise at the sudden question. Then smiled in understanding.

"My dad says they've been get younger and younger lately. When he was a new recruit he was the youngest at about 24." He shrugged. "My dad calls it the new generation. A wave of young people ready for change."

Tsuna smiled. "B-but didn't y-your dad leave the Vongola?"

"Yeah, but he still has friends here and they keep him in touch. He'll probably visit sometime since I'm here now."

"Oh." Tsuna thought Yamamoto's dad sounded really cool. He'd like to meet him someday.

"Oh look there's Gokudera!"

The two of them made their way over to the solitary teen quickly and sat down. Gokudera scowled at them.

"What are you punks doing here? Get lost!"

Tsuna blinked. Was it him or did Gokudera sound harsher than normal. Didn't they sit together last night? "E-eh? D-don't you g-guy's normally s-sit together?"

Yamamoto laughed sheepishly. "Haha No actually. I normally sit with another group. In fact we don't really interact at all during the day."

Tsuna tilted his head in a silent question and Yamamoto answered immediately.

"I thought you'd feel more comfortable sitting together since we're your roommates, but it looks like Gokudera doesn't appreciate the company. Last night was apparently a onetime thing."

Yamamoto stood pulling Tsuna up with him. "Come on Tsuna, let's go sit somewhere else."

Tsuna blinked and looked at the scowling Gokudera. Did he always sit alone? He remembered all the times he sat alone during lunch at school and sat back down. It wasn't fun to always be alone. Gokudera glared at him and Tsuna gulped, but didn't move.

"B-being alone isn't f-fun. R-right G-Gokudera-kun?" his voice was soft, but he stared determinedly into Gokudera's shocked eyes.

The silver haired boy blinked. Once. Twice. Then turned his head and tsked.

"Whatever."

"Haha okay!" Yamamoto sat back down.

Yamamoto chatted as they continued to eat. Tsuna learned that he was on the baseball team at his middle school. He didn't doubt that the happy boy was very popular.

"D-don't you miss you f-friends?" He asked quietly.

Yamamoto froze and Tsuna apologized quickly.

"Ahaha. It's okay, you don't need to say sorry I was just surprised that's all." Yamamoto's smiled stretched wider, but it didn't look right to Tsuna.

"Truth be told I wasn't close to many of them. Haha So…." He trailed off laughing and scratching the back of his head.

Tsuna frowned.

"But Tsuna's so sweet I bet he had loads of close friends. Right?"

He blinked. "Ah, n-no. You guys a-are the f-first f-friends I've e-ever had."

Silence met this statement, before Gokudera frowned.

"I'm not your friend, stupid. Don't think of me as such. I don't make friends with weaklings."

"Ahaha, Gokudera that's cruel." Yamamoto turned to Tsuna. "That was a joke right? Haha Tsuna can be funny."

Tsuna frowned. There was that strange smile and laugh again. It looked fine in fact there was no signs that made it seem abnormal, but Tsuna didn't think it fit Yamamoto. It looked strained, almost fake to Tsuna's eyes.

"What's up Tsuna? Haha, You've been staring at me weirdly."

Tsuna opened his mouth to say nothing, but that wasn't what came out.

"Yamamoto if you don't want to smile or laugh then you shouldn't."

Yamamoto gaped at him, while Gokudera stared. Finally Gokudera snorted, then chuckled.

"Ha. He got you baseball idiot. And here I was thinking I was the only one who noticed!"

Tsuna gasped and his hands covered his mouth. What was he saying!? He had just met him and suddenly he was criticizing Yamamoto!

"S-sorry Yamamoto I didn't mean to say that! Oh, now I look like an idiot!"

He ducked his head waiting for Yamamoto to yell at him for saying weird things. He had just started to hope that the three of them would become good friends. He was so stupid! Gokudera was still chuckling and Tsuna couldn't understand why.

He felt a hand pat him on the head. "Haha Tsuna isn't an idiot at all. He's very perceptive."

Tsuna looked up at Yamamoto. He blinked. The other boy was smiling, but it didn't seem wrong. In fact he got the feeling that this was the first completely true smile he's seen out of the other boy.

Yamamoto patted his head one more time before getting up. "Come on, we should head to the classroom. Haha, Hibari will bite us to death if we're late."

Tsuna didn't even want to ask about the last sentence and instead smiled shyly at the former baseball player. Gokudera stood too.

"Tsk. I'd like to see him try."

"Haha, you shouldn't say that Gokudera."

Tsuna smiled as the three of them left the cafeteria putting their trays at the designated spot on the way out. Yamamoto seemed happier for that he was glad. Though he couldn't image why.

As they walked down the halls Tsuna began to wonder at his fairly easy transition from Namimori to the Vongola. It was all rather strange. He expected more bumps than this, but so far the only miserable part was knowing his dad was around here somewhere. He was in a completely different dimension should there be a different language or something. Japanese couldn't be that common, could it? Not to mention Gokudera didn't really look Japanese. Neither did the Ninth for that matter. He expressed his thoughts to the other two quietly hoping they wouldn't think he was dumb for realizing this just now.

Gokudera rolled his eyes. "No it's not. Everyone's speaking the language of their homeland. I'm speaking Italian right now. But we are able to understand each other because of the flames. They translate any foreign language subconsciously for their user as long as you're talking to another person with flames. You could understand the chatter in the cafeteria, right? Did you honestly think all these people, some who are from dimensions where Japan doesn't even exist, were speaking Japanese?"

Tsuna didn't want to answer that question.

"Haha. Don't worry Tsuna I was confuse at first too!" He wrapped an arm around his shoulder. "I'm also from Japan. I was born in Namimori, how about you?"

Tsuna blinked. "Eh? Me too."

Yamamoto laughed. "Really, I wonder why we didn't run into each other."

"It's obvious isn't it? You too were living in two different dimensions. There are heaps upon heaps of them out their all stacked on top of one another. A single change in one dimension creates a completely new one…."

Tsuna got a little dizzy when Gokudera started going in to details and turned to Yamamoto for help who simply shrugged. They walked out of the Barracks and toward the school. They were a little early, but the teacher was there. Yamamoto introduced him to her. Hamment-sensei was a sweet looking lady with large blue eyes and frizzy brown hair, who gave him a packet for beginners so he could catch up with the rest of the class. She told them that there wasn't any seating chart, but if they disrupted the class with talking or fooling around she would move them immediately, no excuses. Tsuna smiled at her and nodded. The three of them moved to sit at one of the large desks. Each one had three chairs. Tsuna sat in the middle with Gokudera to his right and Yamamoto to his left. They didn't have to take notes, but it was recommended since, Hamment-sensei, did give the occasional test to make sure they understood the material.

They spent the rest of the time looking over the packet with him as other students trickled in and sat down. Tsuna didn't notice the odd looks and whispers of the other students when they noticed the three, but his companions did. Gokudera shot a glare at the students while Yamamoto tensed slightly, but steadily ignored them.

Both teens knew why they their fellow classmates were surprised, after all it wasn't often that you'd see Gokudera and Yamamoto together even though the two were roommates. Gokudera was a punk, with a temper nobody wanted to deal with while Yamamoto was friendly, but kept his distance from everyone. A group of students hung out around him, though none of them could say they were his friends since they didn't know a thing about the boy. Yet there they were talking and _helping _a small boy, who looked like he would be blown away by a gust of wind.

Tsuna smiled as the packet reviewed basically everything that Gokudera had explained to him yesterday about flames with a few extra tidbits. He was a little uncertain at first about how he was going to get through these classes since he had already been a bad student, but if Gokudera and Yamamoto were willing to help him and he worked really hard then he was sure he'd make it.

"Kufufu, Hello again little mouse."

A shiver raced down his spine and Tsuna turned his eyes up to the boy he had met earlier. He stood near them with his other two companions.

"Ahaha, Hello Mukuro. What are you doing here?" Yamamoto's voiced gained a slight edge to it; a warning.

Mukuro merely glanced at him in amusement. Before turning his eyes back to Tsuna.

"This is my class Yamamoto Takeshi, why wouldn't I be here? In any case I don't think the two of us were introduced properly. My name is Rokudo Mukuro." He gave a mocking bow before gesturing flippantly to his two companions. "These are my associates Ken and Chikusa."

"It's n-nice t-to meet y-you R-Rokudo-san. M-my n-name is Sawada T-Tsunayoshi."

Tsuna's stuttered was more pronounce than it had ever been and he was trying to control his shaking as he bow his head slight from where he was sitting.

"Kufufu trust me the pleasure is all mine. Please feel free to call me Mukuro. Everyone else does. Now if you'll excuse us."

"O-of c-course."

"Ahaha Bye."

"Tsk."

Tsuna stared down at his desk as they passed by and continued to do so until they had already sat down at the back of the class. He was pale and trembling slightly. Yamamoto hesitated before putting his hand on his new friends shoulder.

"Tsuna?"

"S-sorry, Yamamoto. I…well M-Mukuro g-gives me a v-very bad feeling."

"He gives everyone a bad feeling, stupid."

"Haha Gokudera's right you know Tsuna. He's very scary."

"B-but…"

"But aside from that, Tsuna…" Tsuna jumped at the sudden seriousness in Yamamoto's voice and looked up at the other boy. "Why is it you'll call him by his first name and not me?"

Tsuna blinked and Yamamoto chuckled. He smiled catching onto Yamamoto's attempt to try and relief the tension Mukuro left behind.

"Well wh-when he asked it s-sounded more like a threat."

They all chuckled at his comment and Tsuna looked up as the door opened again and a group of students led by a timid looking red head with bandages on his face walked in the classroom taking a group of desks near the front.

"That's the Simon's."

Tsuna turned to Yamamoto and he explained.

"The Vongola aren't the only ones who fight the Millefiore. There are a bunch of different organizations out there. The Simon's are one of them. However, they've fallen out of power and those guys are some of the few left. They came here in order learn how to fight since their organization doesn't have the means to teach them."

"There are others?"

"That's a common misconception among people who were recently pulled into the Vongola." Gokudera took over the explanation. "There are other organizations with the same types of abilities or flames like I mention yesterday. While others have different flames such as the Simon. The most well-known aside from the Vongola are the Cavallone, who is the Vongola's most powerful ally, and others such as the Giegue and Beccio. Most are allied with the Vongola; however, some are not due to different opinions on how to fight the Millefiore."

Tsuna nodded, feeling a bit overwhelmed of the vastness of the entire situation. The door banged open and another odd person jumped in striking a pose.

"Never fear Longchamp is here! On time today too!" He was followed by a small posse of equally odd looking people. And that was saying something after seeing the Simon family.

Hamment-sensei rolled her eyes, obviously used to the boy's antics. After they sat down the teacher called for their attention and class start. Hamment-sensei was about to open her mouth to start her lecture when the door burst open.

"SORRY, TO THE EXTREME. I WAS GOING OUT FOR AN EXTREME MORNING RUN IN THE FOREST AND GOT EXTREMELY LOST!"

There was laugher in throughout the class and Tsuna smiled at the boy's enthusiasm, while Gokudera muttered idiot under his breath and Yamamoto laughed. The teacher rubbed her forehead and simply gestured for him to take a seat. The boy spotted the three of them and immediately came over.

"SAWADA, IT'S EXTREMELY GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN."

"You t-to Onii-san. But can y-you keep your voice down. The t-teacher is trying to talk."

"If you extremely say so, Sawada!" He was still loud, but he wasn't bellowing much to Tsuna's relief.

The older boy pulled an empty chair from another table and sat down next to Gokudera much to the other boy's irritation.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

"I'm extremely sitting here, Octopus-Head!"

"What did you call _me_!?"

"Octopus-Head!"

"You…! I'll kill you!" Gokudera had his bombs out within seconds while Sasagawa stood looking ready to fight as well.

Hamment-sensei was about to snap and shout at the two troublemakers when a soft voice cut through the commotion.

"Onii-san, Gokudera-san please stop. We're in a classroom with other students. Your fight could hurt them. Not only that, but Hamment-sensei is trying to teach. You're both being rude. Please sit down."

Tsuna didn't shout, in fact he spoke very quietly, he didn't even stand up. Yet despite the noise his voice carried through-out the classroom. Everyone held their breathe think this was the last time they'd see the new student, alive that is. Gokudera didn't earn his nickname for nothing. However, to their surprise both of the boys sat down. Sasagawa looked properly chastised. Gokudera had a scowl on his face, but put his dynamite away none the less glaring at Tsuna the entire time.

Hamment-sensei took advantage of the sudden silence and spoke. "Well then, now that's over shall we continue or will there be another interruption?"

She really shouldn't have jinxed herself, because no sooner did she finish then a knock on the door caught everyone attention. She took a deep breath obviously trying not to scream and answered it.

Tsuna shook his head feeling bad for the teacher while the class chuckled. He glanced at the two white haired boys to his right and smiled gently at them to show he wasn't really angry. Ryohei grinned back while Gokudera continued to scowl. Tsuna was just glad they stopped before someone got hurt.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi."

He jumped at his name and look up at the teacher. She gestured for him to come forward.

"You are being summoned, please follow this man."

She gesture to a tall man in a suit who nodded, but otherwise looked very menacing. He gulped and stood slowly. Yamamoto smiled at him encouragingly and Tsuna gave his a shaky one in return.

"Don't worry Tsuna! I'll take extra notes and Gokudera and I will explain the lesson to you later."

"Like hell I will!"

"T-Thank you."

He headed to the door leaving his new notebook and pencil with Yamamoto and followed the man as he turned and marched down the hall. Tsuna wasn't sure what to think. Did he do something wrong? Was he in trouble? He couldn't muster up the courage to ask the man leading him and thus continued worrying while they left the school and walked to the main building.

Back in the classroom a few people were wonder where that earlier confidence went. While others recognized his surname as the same as the Vongola's Young Lion Sawada Iemitsu. None of them quite knew what to think of the boy.

Tsuna followed the man up through several hallways before they came to what looked like an infirmary were a young nurse greeted them and showed the two to a private room. Tsuna was reminded strongly of his last doctor's visit, but sat down on the low paper covered bed regardless. The man leaned again the wall next to the door. Neither spoke. A few minutes passed. It was starting to get unbearably awkward when the door opened and a middle aged lady walked in holding a clipboard.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi?"

"Y-Yeas, ma'am."

She smiled gently at him and he relaxed slightly. "My name is Dr. Ivory. Do you know why you're here?"

"N-no, ma'am."

She shot a look at the man, but he didn't look all that impressed.

"The boy didn't ask."

She sighed and Tsuna fidgeted. "Sorry."

"Don't be dear. Okay you're here for me to adjust your memories." Tsuna looked at her in confusion and she explained. "Well as I'm sure you know everything someone comes here anyone who knew them in the past is immediately wipe of their memory of him or her. You're…well dear, your father became a part of the Vongola before you were born and eventually had to leave your family due to safety reasons. The Tenth requested that I give you back your memories before the two of you met so that there is no confusion."

The man left the room to give them some privacy.

Tsuna frowned. "I had my memories erased?"

She smiled encouragingly. "Yes, dear."

"But…then w why do I still remember him?"

"What?"

"I r-remember my father ma'am."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Dr. Ivory looked shocked.

"That's not possible." She breathed. She reached her hand out to him before hesitating. "May I? I just want to confirm."

Tsuna nodded and she placed her hand on his forehead her ring a bright indigo. Tsuna closed his eyes and tried not to flinch when his memories of his father flashed before his closed lids. When she pulled away Dr. Ivory look sufficiently shaken and gestured for him to follow her. The man raised an eyebrow, but followed them anyway. The three of them left the infirmary and continued down more hallways and up some stairs.

They finally stopped in front of a fancy oak door at the end of the last hallway and Dr. Ivory knocked. The familiar voice of the Ninth meet Tsuna's ears giving them permission to enter the room and they did. Tsuna looked first at the large oak desk pile high with stacks of paper at the end of the room in front of three floor to ceiling windows. It was most definitely the centerpiece of the room and Tsuna couldn't help, but stare at the beautiful designs carved into it. To the right of the large room there were two large oak bookcases completely stuffed with books of all sizes. On that same wall were two door, one he assumed was probably a bathroom, while the other was a mystery. To Tsuna's left on the opposite wall there were several fancy looking filing cabinets.

Further down, near the door Tsuna had come through, there was a small sitting area with a couch and three comfortable looking chairs surrounding a low coffee table. The couch was a few feet in front of large window seat with several fluffy looking pillows. The entire room screamed money, from the wood paneling and glass chandler to the furniture, wine colored carpet and rugs. Everything looked handmade and Tsuna almost didn't want to go in fearing he might mess it up with his very presence.

Two chuckled caught his attention and he turned toward the sitting area again. There on the couch was the Ninth and sitting in one of the chairs was his father wearing a suit. He stared. He had never seen the man in a suit. He was always in some terrible looking orange pants and a white tank top or boxers. He also wore boxers a lot.

"It's okay Tsuna. First timers often feel overwhelmed with my office when entering it."

The Ninth smiled kindly at him and Tsuna noticed Dr. Ivory, and the other man bowing in respect. He hastily did the same. His father chuckled again and he blushed.

"Well I have to say I'm surprised. It normally takes longer to recover memories and even more for the person in question to adjust."

"Well, sir, there was a problem."

The Ninth's eyes sharpened and his father sat up straighter. The man who Tsuna still hadn't gotten the name of left the room and closed the door quietly behind him.

"Well, sir, it seems the younger Sawada-san was not in any need of the procedure. He remembers everything himself."

"Impossible! I was there when they did it!" His father exclaimed looking upset and confused.

Tsuna tried to recall when that could have occurred. It must have been when his dad brought that one man over in a white lab coat. Tsuna could remember feeling distinctly odd after the man put his hand on his head for a minute. He was sent up to his room after that.

"It's true, Sawada sir, I checked myself." Dr. Ivory replied looking professional.

"Well isn't this an interesting turn of events." The Ninth sighed. "Thank you for your time Dr. Ivory. I trust you won't say a word?"

She nodded and bowed again, before leaving.

"Tsuna, could you take a seat please?"

Tsuna nodded at the other man and gingerly sat down in one of the chairs and look up shyly at the two men.

"Tsunayoshi." His father's voice sounded so broken. "I… you weren't suppose too… if I had known…." He trailed off and put his face in his hands. "All these years you didn't know where or why I had left. Oh lord. You must hate me."

Tsuna stared at the man and surprisingly enough none of the feelings of resentment rose. They were still there, but muted by his father reaction. He was upset over the fact that Tsuna remembered him leaving and knew Tsuna had been affected by it. And he had been upset, but being here and learning more about the Vongola he realized why his father had left. He wanted to protect them and thought that that was to only way. Tsuna wouldn't lie to himself and say he still wasn't upset over his choice, but he understood it now and looking at the crestfallen man he understood that it must have been a hard choice to make.

Tsuna sighed. He couldn't bring himself to get up and hug the man. He barely knew him. But still…

"Tsuna." Tsuna smiled gently at his father when he looked up in surprise. "Everyone calls me Tsuna."

Tsuna wasn't prepared for his strong arms to wrap around him in a bone crushing hug after his words, but it wasn't terrible. Tsuna closed his eyes and leaned into his father's embrace. It was warm.

It was…nice.

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><p>Timoteo look at the touching scene in front of him with tear glazed eyes. The only son he had left didn't like being in the same room as him much less being touch, <em>hugged<em>, by him. He turned his head and gazed out the window. He hadn't told Iemitsu of his plans for the boy yet, and had a feeling that it wouldn't go over very well with the younger man. However, he hoped Iemitsu would see why he made his decision and realize how important his young son is to the continuation of the Vongola. He sighed, only time would tell...

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><p><strong>Once again not much was changed in the chapter, however there is a huge change to Iemitsu side of the story at the beginning of the next chapter. I'll try and post that in a little bit. I'm still working on the Mukuro fight, but I should be done by tonight. Then I'll edit a few more chapters (I have a list of things I forgot or just thought of to add to some of the later chapter...) and I'll be done with the Mukuro Arc. Yay! XD<strong>

**Reviews~**

**crimsonarrows~ Thanks for the review! Awe, I'm sure you're good at other stuff involving writing too! Yeah, I figured I made you guys wait long enough and I should post some of the chapters that have been done for a while now. Good luck on your finals! I don't start back to school till Wednesday so I've been taking it easy. XD Yay I'm glad you like it!**

**Aliaissa~ Thanks for the review! Yeah, I like writing him. Which is weird 'cause I wasn't exactly fond of him in the manga/anime. I didn't hate him, but I didn't really like him either. *shrugs* Anyway, that's for the correction I'll go back at check that now! **


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Nope**

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><p>Nothing was said for several minutes as his father held onto him for dear life. Tsuna was starting to feel awkward when his father pulled away slightly and started to speak.<p>

"I was picked up by the Vongola when I was a young man, only eighteen, which was unheard of at the time. With nothing to lose, since I had cut ties with my family, I threw myself into training and eventually working for the CEDEF, which is a branch of the Vongola that specializes in information and subterfuge. I met your mother on one of my easier missions and I was never able to stop going back to meet and talk with her. After a year or so I contacted the 9th and ask for permission to marry her, as is require for relationships outside of the organization. I had told her about my work up front. I was surprised at how easily she accepted it, but never questioned it."

He sighed softly. "Everything went smoothly for a few years and I had hoped it would remain that way. Your birth was such a blessing and Nana was ever the understanding woman. However, right after I had become the head of the CEDEF we were attack one night by the Millefiore. Nana and I had gone out on a date leaving you with a babysitter. On our way home we were ambushed. I…"

He faltered. "There were too many of them. I could have got away if it had only been myself, but I also had to protect Nana who had no way of defending herself. We were both severely injured before help arrive."

He was quiet for another moment.

"Over the years I had seen many people I cared about injured, but Nana wasn't a fighter. She didn't get hurt on a mission she choose herself. She was injured, on the brink of death, because I choose to take the risk and marry her thinking I was powerful enough to protect her. I was wrong and she paid the price. We were healed by our best emergency doctors and everything went back to normal.

Or at least on the surface it did. Nana was obviously traumatized by the event. She became more paranoid about going outside even in our own yard. She had to take medicine for anxiety after several panic attacks. She had nightmares and shied away from loud noises. I suggested that we move to one of the Vongola owned properties for families, but she refused to leave Namimori. Those were the first arguments we ever had and they were hell on both of us. I tried everything, but I couldn't help her. Nothing seemed to work.

After interrogating the people who attack us we came to the conclusion they didn't know who my family was or even where they were in Namimori. So, eventually I planted a false lead on the whereabouts of you two and then erased your memories. I had double the normal guards stationed there for several years after, but the Millefiore seemed to have bought our lie and moved on to other targets after failing to find you and Nana. I had hoped you would never develop flames so you wouldn't have to deal with this life, but it seems as though once again my wish was not granted."

Tsuna sat there numb for a minute or two trying to process the events that occurred when he was two young to properly understand. His father's actions made a lot more sense now. He didn't quit know how to respond. His lingering feeling of resentment felt so petty now. Iemitsu was standing in front of him now having let go of him completely while Tsuna was thinking.

"I realize it'll be difficult to accept me back into your life even after telling you this. After all there were many other things I could have done to prevent that incident from ever occurring. Including moving to a Vongola protected base before it even happened or after despite Nana's protest. But I didn't and here we are now."

Tsuna watched him for a minute. There was regret and anger in his eyes directed towards himself along with sadness.

"Uh, well…" He took a deep breath and continued. "I don't really know you. The memories I have of you are that from a young child. I'm still upset that you left, but I understand why now and…I want to know you."

His mother always said that talking was the first step toward forgiveness. He might still be angry with his father, but he wasn't going to shut the man out completely especially after hearing his side of the story.

Iemitsu smiled. "Yes, of course. We'll have to get together from time to time. It might be tough with our conflicting schedules, but I'm sure we can find some free time to meet up."

He pulled away completely and heading back toward his previous seat. When everyone was back in their proper seats again his father and the Ninth immediately exchanged looks and began discussing how Tsuna could possible remember him. The change in conversation was obvious, but Tsuna didn't say anything. In a way he was grateful he would no longer have to think too hard on it, for the time being at least.

Iemitsu suggested that it might have something to do with Tsuna's flame which was still unknown, but the Ninth had a different opinion on the matter.

"I believe it is because of the Vongola blood flowing through your veins. It's said that descendants of the Vongola Primo, or the first boss of the Vongola, often have oddities about them that only their blood could explain. Such has the fact that Reborn reported Tsuna being able to see him even though he was on a different plane than him. Tsuna looks quite a bit like your ancestor I wouldn't be surprised if he inherited some of the traits the Primo was known for when he was alive. We don't take away a person's memories. That's impossible. Our top medical illusionists use their skills to tweak the memories involving the person in question and prevent thoughts of the person from rising to a conscious level."

Tsuna blinked in surprise, and was slightly impressed. You could do all of that with illusions? Not to mention the fact that he was apparently a decedent of the Vongola Primo. And what was this about Reborn being on a different plane? What did that mean?

"One of the many things the Vongola Primo was known for was his Hyper Intuition. It's said it was so powerful he could see through even the most powerful illusion. Tsuna may have inherited a portion of this ability allow his mind to reject the illusion and keep his memories about you intact along with being able to see through the different planes."

While his father nodded looking thoughtful, Tsuna was simply confused. Timoteo seemed to notice.

"If you have a question please go ahead and ask it Tsuna."

"Oh, o-okay. Um w-what are these p-planes?"

"Okay so I'm sure you've learned by now that there are many, many dimensions." Tsuna nodded and he continued. "Well each of these dimensions is separated into different planes of existence. Normal people can only see and live in one plane, which we call the reality plane, though there are cases in which people have the ability to see or even enter other planes.

Depending on the dimension there are also people and creatures that live on a different plane. They are in the same dimensions; however some planes are fast than the reality plane and others that are slower. When on missions Vongola agents will often travel and fight on a different plane in order not to be noticed by average people. The women that attacked you, sealed your mother on a slower moving plane, making it look like she was frozen when she was actually simply moving at a miniscule pace in comparison to the reality plane."

He saw Tsuna's confusion and tried to explain further.

"Hmm let's see. All right how about this. There are thousands of different cakes on a table. They represent the dimensions. Now each of these cakes has several different layers. These represent the planes. The layers are different flavors and colors making them unique from the others. The middle layer, vanilla, is the reality plane. The other planes surround it, but they don't interact which is why a normal person cannot see what is on a separate plane. Did that help?"

Tsuna's eyes lit up in understanding and he nodded. His father chuckled, while the Ninth smiled.

After that they talked about miscellaneous things including how well Tsuna was adjusting to living at the Vongola. For which Tsuna shyly told them about his new friends and that he really liked it here so far. He missed his mother and wished he had a few of his possessions, but other than that he was happy.

When they finally decided that he should really get back to class, Tsuna and his father stood awkwardly for a moment before Tsuna nodded and they shook hands. He bowed to the Ninth and left the room feeling lighter than he had when entering it. The same man from before led his back to class and he noticed that two in a half classes had gone by while he was gone and there was a different teacher at the front of the room. He gave the stern looking man a nervous smiled and slipped back into his seat between Yamamoto and Gokudera. Yamamoto smiled at him while Gokudera looked bored. Ryohei was dutifully doodling in his notebook, but smiled at him when he passed mouthing the word _extreme._

"Well, thanks to that interruption I'll have to start my explanation over again." The teachers nasally voice made Tsuna cringe, while the rest of the classed groaned.

Gokudera rolled his eyes and went back to staring up at the ceiling while Yamamoto frowned. Nezu-sensei as Tsuna soon found out was a very nasty man who thought he was better than everyone else and made sure to thoroughly embarrass any student who scored below his standards, which were extremely high. Tsuna wasn't looking forward to his classes, especially considering the fact that he was terrible at science and school in general.

He felt bad for the quiet redhead in the front of the classroom who was the teacher's prime target for snide remarks and accusations. He knew what that felt like. He tried to take good notes, but the man was talking too fast for him to understand what was going on. He nearly cried with relief when Yamamoto whispered that he'd help him later.

The four of them were up and nearly out of the class immediately when the class ended and Yamamoto said it was lunch time. They chatted all the way down the hallway with Ryohei shouting _extreme_ every once in a while when he agree with what they were saying. Tsuna glanced at Gokudera. He seemed angry about something. Tsuna wanted to ask, but was too scared too. He resolved to do it later if Gokudera was still in a bad mood by the end of lunch.

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><p>Yamamoto glanced at Tsuna out of the corner of his eye and smiled at the concerned look the shorter boy was sending Gokudera. Tsuna was so sweet. His silver haired roommate had been in a foul mood since Tsuna had cut into his fight with Ryohei and he could guess why.<p>

There were very few people that Gokudera listened too. One of which was his sister, but that was mostly because he collapsed with a terrible stomach ache at the sight of her. The only other person, that Yamamoto knew, was the Vongola Nono. There might have been others, but he doubted it. The fact of the matter was Gokudera didn't like being told what to do and he tended to react violently when someone tried to order him around. When Yamamoto had first come here Gokudera was the only person who had his own room because he blew up his roommates.

Gokudera tried to do the same to him, but Yamamoto was faster and stronger than the others and was able to dodge and punched the other boy in the face. They were both beat up afterwards, but Yamamoto stayed in the room. The other boy never failed to give him terse responses and hate filled insults to any question after that, until Tsuna came here.

The smaller boy probably didn't even know what kind of effect he had on the people around him. Yamamoto for one felt more calm and happy when talking or even simple being in the same room as the boy. His smiles were truer when Tsuna was around. His kind nature had even Gokudera softening up and explaining things to the brunette which was a strange sight to behold.

Yamamoto had noticed it right away, but it seemed like Gokudera didn't. However, that incident in the class made him realize it. And Gokudera didn't like this change one bit. Yamamoto smiled sadly at the other boy. Gokudera tried so hard to disconnect with the rest of the world. Using his fiery temper and weapons to keep others at a distance. He probably didn't know how to deal with situations like this. He shook his head. There was no use thinking about it. Gokudera would realize sooner or later that Tsuna was a person worthy of letting in and becoming friends with, he was a genius after all. Yamamoto just hoped he realized this before he did something stupid.

"Yamamoto?"

"Ehh?" He was jerked back to reality, by Tsuna's voice.

"Ahaha Sorry Tsuna, I was zoning out."

The smaller boy smiled. "It's okay, I w was just wondering what the schedule is normally. Does it change from day to day? Also what c-class do we have next?"

Yamamoto smiled; Tsuna was starting to lose his stutter. "Well let's see. Today's Wednesday so we had our class about Dying Will Flames, then history, and science. After lunch is Weapon's training. Then we have physical training for an hour and a half and we're done! Haha we usually get out about 2 and have the rest of the day to ourselves. Monday is the same schedule, but the rest of the days are different. Tuesday and Thursday we have math first, then language, then Know Your Enemy (KYE), lunch, weapons, and physical training for an hour and a half. Friday thru Sunday we have weapons from 7 to 8:30 and physical training from 9 to 11:00."

"Ah, wow. T-That's nice."

"Ahaha Yeah it is isn't it?"

"It's EXTREME!"

"Ah Onii-san, please d-don't yell!"

"WHY NOT?!"

"Because….well it's, um, disturbing others!"

"Hahaha Come on guys let's get some lunch."

Yamamoto was mildly surprised when Gokudera did sit with them instead of going off to sulk somewhere else, but simply took it as a sign that Gokudera was changing for the better.

He tried to explain what happened in the classes that Tsuna missed with Ryohei chiming in at certain moment trying to help as well, but Tsuna just looked even more confused and Gokudera refused to talk to them despite numerous attempts to include him by the three. Tsuna was looking very upset and couldn't focus on what they were trying to tell him so Yamamoto eventually gave up. They agreed to talk about it later when they had some peace and quiet in the dorm.

Yamamoto wasn't all that worried; classes had only started a week ago so there wasn't much he had to catch up on. Especially if Gokudera got out of his rut and decided to help out. They chatted about what they were going to do after classes. Tsuna wanted to explore the area a bit more, but Ryohei wanted to train some more. They agreed on walking around the grounds and the trails in the forest that way Ryohei could jog if he wanted too.

"Ahaha well Tsuna looks like lunch's over. You guys are lucky, since Gokudera and I have managed to channel our flame we have to spar with the other recruits. All you and Sasagawa have to do is try and activate you flames, which amounts to just sitting there and concentrating."

Yamamoto smiled at Tsuna's relieved look and turned to Ryohei only to blink in surprise. The other boy was staring at Gokudera intently.

"Sasagawa?"

"Gokudera's extremely upset. That's not going to end well."

Yamamoto frowned. He hoped Tsuna would be alright the shorter boy didn't seem to be much of a fighter. He rushed to catch up with them as Sasagawa reverted back to his usual self.

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><p>Tsuna kept shooting quick glances at the silvered haired boy beside him trying to think of something to say. Gokudera had been silent since he got back from the meeting with the Ninth and his father. He was really worried. Did something happen while he was gone? Was Gokudera mad at him? He didn't know what to do.<p>

Yamamoto kept the conversation up on their way to class, but Tsuna could tell he was worried too.

"Stop staring at me, wimp."

"Hiieee! S-sorry, G-Gokudera-kun!"

Was it him or did the other boy have more malice in his voice than before? He looked at his shoes. Yamamoto stopped talk abruptly and glanced sharply at Gokudera.

"Tsk, Stop stuttering around me would you!?"

"Hiiiiieeeee!"

"And that stupid 'hie' thing is annoying too!" Gokudera's voice was sharp and Tsuna flinched.

"Gokudera, stop it!" Yamamoto frowned at the silverette.

"That's EXTREMELY unkind of you octopus head!"

Both of them look upset. Tsuna cringed. This was probably his fault.

"S-Sorry."

"Tsk. You're so freakin' annoying." His hands inched toward his dynamite concealed in his clothing. "You're all so freakin' annoying. Hanging around me, talking, and shouting! I hate it! This is why I don't like dealing with people, but you idiots just don't get the hint!"

"G-Gokude…."

Green eyes snapped over to Tsuna again.

"I especially hate weaklings like you."

Tsuna didn't know what to think. Why was Gokudera so upset? Why, why did he hate him now? Tsuna had thought, no, he shook his head trying to prevent the tears from welling in his eyes. He was stupid for thinking Gokudera liked him in the first place. Why would he? Tsuna _was_ weak after all. He felt a pang in his heart. He was stupid. Silly Tsuna thought that his no good self could have actual friends for once. He pushed his emotions to the side not wanting to cry in front of the other boy.

He felt Yamamoto's hand on his shoulder and Onii-san's presence on his right, but he couldn't even attempt to pretend he was fine. He didn't see their glares at Gokudera's back as he walk a head of them quickly. They walked the rest of the way in silence.

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><p><strong>Oh Gokudera you poor angry baby. I'll post the next chapter soon. I wasn't going to at first 'cause I wanted to work more on the end chapters and I had other stuff to do, but I'll post the next one since this one ended like that. : **

**Reviews~ The last chapter barely got posted before I got a review. I love you guys :,) **

**Lakastri~ Well these were already written. XD So all I have to do is look over them and change a few things before posting. Yes, that was one of the big goals for the rewrite I'm glad you like it! Thanks for the review!**

**crimsonarrows~ Thanks for the review! XD Yeah, I'm liking my college schedule or at least the ridiculously long breaks I have. Okay, I cannot even express how happy it made me that you liked a part of my story so much you'd go back and read it several time! I had this giant smile on my face :D. Thanks again for your review. **


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: Nope :(**

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><p>When they entered the large room Tsuna wasn't sure what he expected, but it wasn't this. The room was completely white like the training rooms Yamamoto and Gokudera showed him yesterday, but there were scorch marks and dents in the wall and floors. He nearly screamed when he caught sight of a human shaped scorch on the floor beside his foot, but held it in not wanting to annoy Gokudera even further.<p>

Yamamoto sent him a sad smile shuffled them further away from the still fuming Gokudera.

They weren't the only ones in the room, in fact a bunch of kids were already waiting, including Mukuro. Tsuna really hoped the scary boy would leave him alone. Thankfully he seemed intent on talking to an annoyed looking black hair boy. Tsuna recognized him as the one who was destroying dummies in one of the training rooms yesterday. Yamamoto has hurried them out of the room with strained smile, but Tsuna had seem the boy tearing apart the practice dummies like they were made of paper. He paled when they started fighting. Mukuro with a trident and the other boy with tonfa's.

"Oh, that's Hibari Kyoya by the way." Yamamoto rubbed the back of his head. "It's best if you stay away from him. He's very strong and gets irritated very easily."

"It's true his attacks extremely hurt!"

Tsuna glanced at Onii-san in disbelieve and he smiled back sheepishly. He must of challenge him or something. Tsuna shook his head, he couldn't even imagine doing something like that himself.

"Oh, Hello little mouse I didn't see you there."

"HIIEEE! M-M-Mukuro!"

"Kufufu How do you did your voice to go that high?"

"Herbivore, why have you abandoned our fight? I will bite you to death for your arrogance."

Tsuna's eyes widened as the other boy seemed to appear in front of him in an instance, emitting a scary aura. He glanced at Mukuro, but he didn't seem worried.

"Kufufu I was talking to someone. It's rude to interrupt."

Tsuna jumped back when their weapons collided with a loud ring.

"T-This is d-dangerous!"

"Haha Would you two fight somewhere else?" Yamamoto wave his hands in surrender while stepping in front of Tsuna.

"Kyoya! Mukuro! Stop it right now!"

Tsuna looked over his shoulder to see a tall blond haired man looking exasperated. The black hair man with a mustache beside him shook his head looking mildly annoyed. The boy's fighting paid him no mind and he sighed.

"Honestly. I'm the boss of the Cavallone. Why do I have to deal with these reckless newbies from the Vongola?"

"Because, Vongola Nono asked this of you when the other instructors were injured and/or traumatized. You said you'd love too, remember?"

The blond haired man slumped a little; there was a slight whine in his voice when he spoke again. "Yeah I know, but they do this every day!"

The man glanced at Tsuna and smiled. "Sorry about this, your new right? Don't worry I'll take care of them then start the lesson. Once I get everyone started then I'll explain how this class works, alright?"

His eyes widened and he smile shying at the man. "T-thank you."

He nodded and smiled back before turning serious and pulling out a whip. Tsuna watched with eye wide as he snatched their weapons away with a flick of his whip. The teacher was really cool! After a scolding that had obviously been repeated many times and had obviously been ignored just as many the teacher turned to the rest of the class and told most of them to resume trying to ignite their flames, like he had taught them and the others, to spar with one another using their flames while Romario, the older man with a mustache, kept an eye on them. Gokudera and Yamamoto were a part of the latter group. The Kyoya person and Mukuro were told to practice by themselves on opposite sides of the room.

Sasagawa grinned at him and gave him a thumbs up as he sat down and stared staring intently at his ring. Tsuna smiled uncertainly at him before looking up at the teacher approached.

"Alright my name is Dino. I'm the boss of the Cavallone, what's your name?" Dino smiled at him and Tsuna relaxed slightly.

"H-Hello. I'm S-Sawada Tsunayoshi, b-but everyone calls me Tsuna. It's nice to meet you, Cavallone-sensei." He didn't know whether he should bow or not, this man was a leader of an important organization.

"Ah so your Sawada's son. I see. I see. Well it's nice to meet you Tsuna, just call me Dino. So do you know your flame?"

"S-Sorry I don't know."

Dino grinned. "I knew you'd say that, but I had to ask. Honestly, I don't know why the Vongola has this tradition. They're just a bunch a dramatic weird-o's if you ask me, but whatever. Okay, so this class is based on trying to get recruits to ignite their flames and learn how to fight with them."

Something exploded behind them and Tsuna watched as Gokudera's opponent went flying.

"Ah, as you can see it can get dangerous when some students are involved, but don't worry we have trained healers on hand."

Those words didn't comfort him. In fact, Tsuna feared for his life now. Especially with Mukuro and that other boy in the same room. They were scary!

"Well anyways to ignite your flame you must have the resolved to do so. This is the most difficult part, but don't worry I'll help you through it."

Tsuna nodded wondering what he meant by resolve. Didn't Gokudera say something like that as well?

"Okay so what you need to do it focus on your ring. Try to sense the energy within it. Then think about what gives you strength."

Tsuna frowned. "S-Sorry, but I d-don't understand."

"That's alright; this is why I said it was the most difficult part. Many people don't know what resolve even is much less how to muster enough of it to ignite your flame. What is important to you Tsuna?"

Tsuna looked at the ground. What was important to him? An image of his mother can to mind and of his old home. That was expected. He loved his mother very much, but surprisingly enough that wasn't the end of the list. Yamamoto, Gokudera, and Onii-san also appeared. He had only met them yesterday, yet they became his first friends. For someone who had been friendless for so many years, he supposed he shouldn't have been surprised. He looked up.

"My mother and my friends. They are important to me. "

It felt good to say friend out loud.

"That's am extreme answer!"

Tsuna jumped and smiled at Onii-san. He had forgotten he was there. Dino nodded and shot a grin at the loud boy before turning back to him.

"Okay, think about those feelings and turn it into resolve."

"H-how do I do that?"

"Think about how important they are to you. Get a good image of them in your mind. Hold that feeling close to you and try channeling it into your ring."

Tsuna tried doing that and for a brief moment he felt something stir, then it was gone. He slumped in defeat.

"Haha. Don't worry Tsuna; there are only a few people who get it on the first time." He gestured to the group of students he told to try and ignite their flames including Onii-san who had gone back to his staring contest with his ring. "I've been working with them for a week now and they still haven't got it yet. It takes time. Even I didn't get it for the longest time. Well, I have to go check on the others now. You can sit down if you want just keep trying okay?"

Tsuna smiled shakily at the older man and sat down as he walked away. He took a deep breath and tried again to no avail. He frowned and closed his eyes think intently about the people he cared about. His mother's gentle smile and warm embrace. He felt something. Yamamoto's laughter and calming demeanor. Onii-san enthusiasm and energetic personality. He almost had it. Gokudera's grumpy personality, grudging explanations and and…

"_Tsk. You're so freakin' annoying."_

"_I especially hate weaklings like you."_

Tsuna opened his eyes slowly. Oh, right. Gokudera hated him, didn't he? He hated him because Tsuna was weak. He stared at the ring on his fingers. Despite the other boys cruel words Gokudera was still important to him. He was one of the first people he met when he woke up here and he explained so much to him. He sighed.

Who was he kidding? He had just met these people yesterday. They didn't really know each other much less become so soon friends. He was just overly attached because he never had friends before. They were probably just being nice since he was new. Once things settled down and the novelty of having a new roommate wore off then the other two would probably distance themselves as well. Not only that, but his mother was back at home with no memory of him ever existing. How was he supposed to summon his flame if the people important to him didn't remember him or didn't really care about him in return?

* * *

><p>As soon as Physical Training ended and Sasagawa dragged Tsuna and him off to the trails. Yamamoto was slightly disappointed that he didn't get to spar Gokudera today. He had a very strong urge to punch the silverette for his earlier attitude. They walked for a bit as Yamamoto tried his hardest to cheer Tsuna up to no avail.<p>

Yamamoto frowned as he looked at the smaller boy beside him. He knew Tsuna was down about what happened with Gokudera earlier, but he wasn't sure how to cheer him up. He tried funny jokes and stories. He tried telling him that Gokudera probably didn't mean it and was just grumpy, but Tsuna only gave him a half-hearted smile in return.

He really wished he knew more about the boys likes and dislikes and even a bit of his history. Only knowing him for only a couple of days made it difficult to help him. Not only that, but he didn't have a lot of experience with helping others out of a funk. The students that did come to him in his original dimension only wanted superficial advice or comfort. It was never something a generic piece of advice couldn't solve. He got the feeling though that wouldn't work with Tsuna.

Sasagawa had a bit more luck with him whenever he passed them on his rounds. Some of his antics would get a reluctant grin out of Tsuna for which Yamamoto was grateful for.

Tension was high in the dorm room that night. Tsuna shied away from Gokudera while Yamamoto couldn't keep from glaring at him. Gokudera glared right back making him even more frustrated. He knew Gokudera held the world at an arm's length. It was obvious the other boy had a hard life before ending up here, but Yamamoto didn't think that was any reason to take it out on Tsuna.

They had gotten along so well the first day. A few hiccups, but Gokudera was actually talking and explaining things without being forced into it. Yamamoto knew Gokudera had enjoyed the company. Tsuna was a likable person and Yamamoto was proud to call him a friend even though they hadn't known each other long.

Several days passed in this fashion. Tsuna got a little better as long as Gokudera wasn't around. He was struggling in classes though. Yamamoto knew he wasn't much help in that regard. It would be much better if Gokudera would explain it to Tsuna in his straightforward manner, but he was still sulking at the world. Tsuna seemed to be distant as well almost hesitant as if he expect Yamamoto to disappear any minute.

He folded his arms above his head while looking up at the ceiling. It was Friday night and he still couldn't figure out a solution to the issue. Sasagawa had just shrugged when he asked him and said it was between Gokudera and Tsuna, but Yamamoto was getting frustrated he couldn't do anything about it.

It seemed so simple to him. They all met and like each other so they became good friends. He realize that other people didn't think the way he didn't, but he wished they did. The world would be simpler that way.

* * *

><p>Thursday was relatively okay when he wasn't near Gokudera. The Thursday classes were just as interesting at the Wednesday classes. Difficult, but interesting. Davis-sensei, the math teacher, was older and taller than Hamment-sensei, but twice as bubbly. She obviously loved her job and mathematics in general. Unfortunately that didn't help Tsuna understand it any better. It didn't help that the curriculum here was definitely a head of what his school had been doing.<p>

Yamamoto tried to help him, but it was a struggled to get him through one practice question.

Language was a bit different than the other classes he had attended as of yet. Since new recruits came from different dimension and had different native tongues the class was mostly online in order to cater to the diversity of students. The teacher, Genkishi-sensei, seemed to be mostly uninterested in them, but gave a quick rundown of the class when Yamamoto introduced him.

They were fairly easy and only went over the basic grammar rules and spelling. It mostly focused on writing reports for the Vongola. What to include, what not too and so on. Every section had an article with a video lecture then a quiz before the next section. To Tsuna it was a relief after struggling through math and he got excited when Yamamoto mentioned off handedly that once you finished the required sections, about 30 total, then you were done with the class. Gokudera had finished it within the first couple of days he was here and Yamamoto was halfway through, but Onii-san seemed to struggle with the very concept and was only done with a small portion of it.

Feeling a bit better about classes in general Tsuna went into Know Your Enemy or KYE happier than he would have thought possible before the Vongola. KYE had to be the most interesting class aside from the flames class. With all of the craziness occurring over the last two days he never thought to ask about the Millefiore. It seemed rather stupid now, considering they were the Vongola's biggest enemy, but Tsuna was never known for being intelligent or even inquisitive.

As it turns out they were an organization similar to the Vongola. However, unlike the Vongola they aimed to take over and control the different dimensions for their own gain. They wormed their way into positions of power within dimensions changing influencing it with technology and powers from other dimensions thereby creating chaos in the universe and tipping the balance between the parallel worlds. This chaos could very well be the end of everything. The Vongola Primo, Giotto, realized this, so in order to prevent the destruction of all of the dimensions he created to Vongola to counterbalance the turmoil that had already been inflicted.

Tsuna was personally overwhelmed with all of the information, but when he thought about, later he was impressed with the Primo for standing up and fighting when it would have been easier to just ignore it.

The day passed with no problems and Tsuna trudged his way through the new classes with a wavering determination. Weapons and Physical Training was the worst. In one he had to think about all of the things he didn't have while failing to summon his flame and the other he had to prove just how useless he was at everything physical. The three coaches for the large class attempted to help him, but it proved to be useless so far. Tsuna just couldn't understand their advice.

Despite the road bumps Tsuna managed to survive through the weekend without any more heartache from the friends he had left and he was starting to think that Yamamoto and Sasagawa weren't going to drop him once someone more interesting caught their eye.

Yamamoto especially tried his hardest to make Tsuna smile and help him out when he was confused over anything. It didn't always help, some of his explanations were confusing, but it cheered him up considerably.

Onii-san was just himself, but he patted him on the head when he was feeling down. Namely in Weapons class where Tsuna was making no progress at all. Dino had assured him multiple times that it was normal and it took time and concentration, but Tsuna knew that he wasn't trying as hard as he should be. He didn't want to think about resolve and fighting. That scared him. He didn't even want to spar with the other kids.

Not to mention the fact that trying meant having to think about his goals and what he cared about. Which eventually led him to thoughts about Gokudera and his outburst which never failed to break his concentration.

Monday rolled around and the atmosphere in the room was just as tense as it had been. That was normal now though and Tsuna tried to ignore it to the best of his ability. It was hard, but he managed. Tsuna was slowly starting to gain some confidence in his friendships and things were looking up until Weapons class once again.

"Kyoya! Mukuro! What did I say?!"

Dino's shout brought him out of his daily struggle. He glanced up at the two scariest people he had the displeasure of sharing a room with. The two we going at it again looking just as scary as the first time. Rubble was flying everywhere. Dino had to use his whip to protect the students he was helping. Tsuna glanced over at the other group. Yamamoto was in a spar, but he was a little ways off and out of range of the collateral damage. Gokudera on the other hand was just turning when his got a full face full of rubble. Tsuna watched in dismay as the dynamite in his hand fell to the ground around him.

Gokudera!

* * *

><p>This is the end of me.<p>

Gokudera closed his eyes in acceptance not expecting a small body to go barreling into him pushing him out of the way.

He gazed in at the ceiling in shock for a minute before the sound of screaming pulled him back into reality. There was someone lying beside him. He turned his head slowly and froze in shock and horror.

There was Tsuna lying face down on the unforgiving floor. His forehead was burnt and bleeding, but that wasn't what made Gokudera nearly hyperventilate. No, it was the other boys back. Tsuna had taken the brunt of his triple bombs when he pushed Gokudera out of the way…

_This is all my fault._

* * *

><p><strong>So completely new chapter! Yay! New Stuff! Uh, so you know how I saidwrote I'd post this chapter because of the semi-sour ending of the last one? I said/wrote that before I remembered how this chapter ended...um sorry about that? I mean since this is a rewrite most of you guys should know how this turns out, but still...**

**Unfortunately,**** I have things I need to do (chores and making dinner) along with working on the last chapter so I may not be able to post chapter 8 till tomorrow...uh sorry about the unexpected cliffhanger. Even I didn't see that coming. :/**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I still don't own it. **

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><p>Gokudera sat on the floor next to the smaller boy's bed and watched the steady rise and fall his chest. Tsuna's wounds were healed and the nurse said that he was just exhausted. Gokudera was charged with watching over him until Tsuna woke up, well, more accurately he refused to leave the other boy and the nurse finally gave up and left.<p>

He clinched his fists.

Growing up as a bastard child of a mafia boss was troublesome, especially after he found out that his mother had been his dear piano teacher who had died. He had always felt inferior and in his anger pushed people away. It was only when he had no one else, did he realize how painful it was to be alone. However, he couldn't change the choices he made or the fact that he had hurt others with his sharp words and fists. He eventually caved and ran away.

No one cared who he was on the street or where he came from, but life was infinitely more difficult. He couldn't count the times he had curled up into a shivering ball in the corner of some ally attempting to be invisible and trying to ignore the rumbling of his stomach. He had tried to join other mafia families to no avail. They laugh in his face and occasionally beat him up. Years passed and he got name for himself as a fiery tempered punk who'd blow up anyone who dared tell him what to do.

When he was taken to the Vongola by that pervert doctor nothing really changed other than the fact that he now had a roof over his head and food whenever he was hungry. He regained the memories of his sister, but it wasn't like they were close to begin with, so he barely saw her at all, for which he was grateful. He got the nickname _Smokin' Bomb Hayato_, and continued ignoring the rest of the world as much as he could. The other kids learned to stay clear of him and the teachers simply gave up trying to control him.

When the Baseball Idiot arrived he wasn't overly fond of the boy, but he was strong and generally left him alone. Gokudera was willing to put up with him as long as he didn't get any bright ideas on trying to befriend him. Yamamoto seemed to understand and they didn't talk much other than the occasional question from the idiot for which Gokudera answered grudgingly.

Gokudera wasn't happy at all when another boy was dropped in his room. The Baseball Idiot and him nearly got in another fight when he was about to toss the unconscious boy out the door. They eventually settle it without fists and the idiot woke the boy. Everything seemed to move quickly after that. He was wrangled into an explanation and the smaller boy had seemed so genuinely grateful an emotion he was not used to receiving from someone else. He recognized his last name and connected him relation to the head of the CEDEF immediately, but didn't say anything. It wasn't his business.

More events flew by just as swiftly. The brunette was very nervous and had an annoying stutter, but was also very kind. He seemed to understand loneliness and saw through the Baseball Idiot's fake smile with little trouble. For once in a long time he was grudgingly happy. The shorter boy had an air about him that drew Gokudera in and his eyes seemed to accept him despite his attitude toward him. He hadn't noticed it at first. He was so caught up in the moment, still not fully realizing what exactly was happening.

That was until the brunette had stopped the fight with his words alone. He had calmed at the smaller boys voice and felt ashamed for his actions at his words. His father, his stepmother, his sister, none of them had ever made him feel that way. His father and stepmother were too afraid to anger him so they had always given him what he wanted. His sister used to scare him and to this day he still suffered childhood trauma when seeing her, but she had never been able to order him around. They only one who had ever made him feel ashamed for his temper was his piano teacher, his real mother.

Gokudera couldn't concentrate after that and was almost grateful for the other boy's absence. He didn't understand. All his thoughts were a jumble. Why? Why!? He got angry at his own confusion and strange actions and took it out on the boy. He immediately felt bad afterward especially at the sight of that sorrowful expression, but he didn't know how to apologize. Days passed and he only grew more and more miserable. His temper had once again ruined things for him and he didn't know how to fix it. He wasn't good with people. He tried to throw his troubling emotions to the wind and pushed himself harder and harder in his training.

When classed started he took out his sparing opponents in quick succession. He wasn't prepared to the rubble to hit him in the face when he turned around. He had let go of his dynamite in surprise.

He had seriously thought that he was going to die. Though he never thought he end up dying in such a comical manner. Destroyed by his favorite weapon. He had imagined his death to be more dramatic. He thought that's he'd calmly smiled and say something cool. He had never imagined he'd have regrets. He never thought he'd wished he would have a second chance to apologize to the boy he had wronged.

He bowed his head in shame. He had gotten a second chance at the cost of the health and wellbeing of the very boy he wanted it for. The irony was painful. He stared at the smaller boy lying unconscious and unaware of the turmoil that Gokudera was currently experiencing. Looking at his calm face he realized just how small the other boy was. He looked so fragile. He felt another wave of shame. Looking down at his clinched hands he made a decision.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi. I will protect you."

He owed the other boy his life. Gokudera would now gladly give his own to protect him. He was born into a mafia family after all.

And the mafia took life debts very seriously.

* * *

><p>Timoteo nodded solemnly as Reborn finished his report.<p>

"So you are certain that you saw the sky flames?"

"Yes sir, it was only for a brief moment, but Tsuna did activate them in order to get over to Gokudera in time to push the boy out of the way. What's more, he didn't activate them in the usual way."

He frowned. "Explain."

"Sir, his eyes changed to a sunset orange and a flame appeared on his head. Normally the flames only appear on the ring, however, Tsuna didn't activate his ring he simple entered…"

"Hyper Dying Will Mode." Timoteo finished for him.

Reborn nodded. "He'll be very sore when he wakes up, but the healer informed me that damage was minimal since he was only in it for a few seconds. Of course he retained other injuries due to the explosion, but those were taken care of easily."

Timoteo was only half listening, but nodded any way while deep in thought. The boy's blood line was proof enough that he'd be powerful, but to actually go into HDWM without the aid of a bullet or pill was outrageous. Not to mention extremely dangerous without training. He took a deep breath. Any doubts on the boy's ability to take the position as Vongola Decimo had flown out the window. He only hoped the boy would forgive him eventually for forcing him into this.

"Reborn. I believe you are most qualified for training Tsuna. This will remain top secret. So I want the boy to continue attending classes normally aside from Weapon's for obvious reasons. However, he is yours outside of class so train him well Reborn." He stood up. "Now if you'll excuse me; I have to go inform Iemitsu and my guardians of this decision."

"Is it a good idea to tell Iemitsu alone?"

"I'll tell my guardians first so that they can hold him back if he gets violent during my explanation."

Reborn nodded and bowed as he left and Timoteo smiled slightly at his friend's back. He could tell the baby wasn't happy about this decision, but he had faith that Reborn would take his job very seriously and turn Tsuna into a magnificent boss. He walked out the door and started down the hall where he had last seen his storm guardian. Hopefully the meeting with Iemitsu would turn out well and nothing important was broken. He already had enough paperwork to fill out in regards to choosing a new successor.

* * *

><p>Tsuna felt a flash of heat and then pain before his vision blackened and he drifted into unconsciousness.<p>

He was having a strange dream.

He was in an empty room with sunset colored crystal walls, ceiling, and floor. He turned around and for a briefest moment he thought he saw a tall blond man with gentle eyes and a glowing flame on his forehead.

_You are not ready, yet. Come back when you are stronger._

"What?! Wait!"

The man was gone and the room was slowly fading around him. He opened his eyes and found himself in his new dorm room. He stared up at the bunk above him for a while trying to regain his bearings. He went to sit up, but was overcome by pain.

"Ack!"

He wrapped his arms around himself and curled up into a ball. What had happened? Everything hurt. Tears welled up in his eyes.

"Sawada-sama! Here swallow this!"

He felt someone open his mouth and plop something round and cherry flavored. He swallowed automatically. He wasn't sure how long he stayed curled up like that, but the entire time someone was talking gently to him and stroking his back. For a minute he thought it was his mother, but as the pained eased up he realized that his mother defiantly didn't sound like a teenage boy. He turned with wide eyes to Gokudera.

Was he still dreaming? He had to be, because the other boy had a concerned look on his face.

"Are you feeling better now Sawada-sama?"

Tsuna nodded feeling a little overwhelmed and slightly frightened. What exactly happened? Why was Gokudera acting this way? He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. The other boy smiled.

"The pill I gave you was from the healers, it's super condensed sun flames meant for killing pain and healing internal injuries. The nurse said to give it to you when you woke up."

"Oh, t-thank y-you."

Tsuna wasn't sure what he expected, but Gokudera suddenly turning serious and kneeling in front of him with his forehead to the ground wasn't it.

"I am very sorry Sawada-sama for saying cruel things and being rude to you. Despite my words you still saved me when I was going to die. For that I owe you my life. Order me to do anything, Sawada-sama and I will do it."

"Hiiiiieee!? G-Gokudera-kun?"

Now he remembered what happened! He had managed to cross the room in an instant and push Gokudera out of the way of his dynamites taking the brunt of the explosion himself. He looked at Gokudera, who still hadn't risen from his position and his eyes softened.

"Gokudera-kun, you don't have to do this."

"I do!" Tsuna jumped as Gokudera looked up with determination. "I grew up in a mafia family, Sawada-sama, and in the mafia if someone saves your life you are in debt to them. You can repay this debt in only one way by becoming their subordinate."

"G-Gokudera-kun I'm n-not a p-part of the m-mafia, so…"

Gokudera cut him off. "I know Sawada-sama, but the traditions of my family have been ingrained into me and even if I didn't come from a mafia background I would still owe you my life and have to repay that debt in some way. I wish to protect the one who saved me! Please, Sawada-sama this is my way of saying thank you! Order me not to go near you if you wish and I will protect you from a far! Or order me never to talk to you again and I will protect you silently! Just please order me to do something. I have said cruel words I didn't mean to you! If you wish it then you can hit me all you want and I will not fight back! Order me to do anything you please I will do so!"

His forehead once again hit the floor after his speak and Tsuna gaped at the boy in concern. He thought over the silvered haired boys' speech and smiled gently. So Gokudera really didn't hate him. That made him happy.

He shook his head at Gokudera's bowed form and knelt in front of him.

"Alright Gokudera-kun I have two orders for you."

Gokudera tensed and spook without looking up. "Yes, Sawada-sama I'll do anything."

"First, don't call me Sawada-sama. Tsuna's fine."

Gokudera jerked his head up. "But!"

Tsuna just held up his hand and the other boy fell silent immediately.

"My second order is…"

* * *

><p>"…to simply be my friend."<p>

Gokudera stared at the smaller boy in shock and awe. Did he hear his orders, right? That didn't make sense. He wanted to argue, but one look into those kind eyes told him not too. Tsuna smiled brightly.

"So, friends?"

"Y-yes, Tsuna…sama."

"Well I suppose that's good enough for now." Tsuna held out his hand as a sign of friendship.

Gokudera, still in shock, and took the hand offered taking note in how much smaller it was in comparison to his. The other boy's smiled got even brighter if that was even possible. Gokudera wanted to go curl up in a corner. Someone like him didn't deserve this kindness. He looked at the ground.

"Why?" He didn't mean for that question to slip out and he immediately tried to apologize, but Tsuna just shook his head.

"Why did I save you? Well that's because I was afraid you were going to die. Even though you said you hated me I still cared about you and was scared when I saw those dynamites fall to the ground around you."

Gokudera's eyes widened. The other boy was so kind. He looked down as a huge wave of shame crashed down on him. He slumped pathetically.

"Ah, Gokudera-kun?!"

"Sorry."

"You don't have to apologize."

"Thank you."

"No Gokudera-kun, I really should be thanking you. Before I came here I didn't have any friends. I was terrible at everything and never stood up for myself when I got bullied. I was lonely, but I didn't do anything about it. I could have gone out and talked to people or asked for help from adults, but I didn't because it was too hard. I gave up on a lot of things because of that. Today was the first time I ever wanted to do something even though it was hard, even though I knew I'd get hurt. I couldn't just sit there and watched as one of the only friends I had die right in front of me." Tsuna gave him a small smile. "So really I should be thanking you for giving me a reason to keep going, to keep trying."

Tsuna looked at him with determined eyes. "I want to get stronger to protect my friends!"

They both jumped when Tsuna's ring suddenly flashed brightly. Tsuna stared in awe and Gokudera's eyes nearly popped out of his head.

Tsuna had mange to draw out his flame. The pure orange flame light up the room as they stared in complete shock. Then it was gone. Gokudera let out a breath and they both watched Tsuna's ring crack and fall from his finger.

"Well we now know what flame, Tsuna-sama has now."

Tsuna looked up in confusion obviously having forgotten what color goes to what flame. Gokudera smiled a little shakily.

"Tsuna-sama has the exceedingly rare sky flame."

"Huh?"

* * *

><p>Reborn watch the two teens talk after Tsuna woke up and was pleased that Tsuna had already gained a loyal subordinate. That would save him some trouble, not to mention the fact that the Yamamoto boy and Sasagawa boy were also prime candidates for guardian positions. He'll have to assess their skills and train them as well. He'd have to invest some time in searching for other suitable candidates. He had a few ideas, but Tsuna's interaction with them would be the deciding factor.<p>

As he continued to watch the two, he started planning out his training methods in order to garner the best results. It was good that Tsuna not only had the resolve to protect his friends, but it was strong enough to activate his flames. He nodded to himself. This was playing out better than he had expected it too.

Look out Tsuna, the training days from hell were about to start…

* * *

><p>"So, an heir has been decided on?"<p>

"That's what my sources tell me~"

"Did they also tell you who it was?"

"No, that has been kept strictly secret by the Vongola Nono and his guardians~"

"Well that's unfortunate."

"Yes, however, my sources believe that the heir is among the new recruits~ besides, how hard is it to find someone with a sky flame?"

"You'd be surprised. The Vongola are a secretive bunch. I will see what I can do."

"Good. Oh and Mukuro, try not to die okay~ It would be a pain to replace such a good subordinate such as yourself~"

"Say what you want, but I am not your subordinate. I am simply going along with you because we have the same goal."

"So feisty! That's why I like you~ Well take care now~"

The line went dead and Mukuro glared at it in annoyance. The sooner he finished this, the sooner he wouldn't have to deal with that man. The Millefiore had such an odd unpredictable leader. He didn't want to be a part of his schemes any longer than necessary…

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><p><strong>Okay, so I managed to post this one too despite my previous doubts. XD Now I think it should be obvious who the major antagonist is going to be, haha, but hopefully the journey will be worth it. Also I was just wondering if anyone caught the little foreshadowing in the last chapter? Hint, hint. Wink, wink.<strong>

**Review Time~**

**_Lakastri~_ I know, but I said I'd post the next one because of its ending and then I gave you guys a worse one XD. Thanks for the review!**

**_lovelydragonfly~_ XD Thanks for the review!**

**_crimsonarrows~_ No problem, like I said they were already written so I only needed to tweak them a bit. Haha I do that too, especially when the characters aren't doing what I want them too XD. Doing the chores isn't bad, its when my siblings mess up all my hard work not half an hour later that bugs me. Thanks for the review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I get tired of these very quickly, but I still do not own khr**

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><p>Timoteo sighed and he sat down across from the younger male. His storm, lightning and rain guardians stood behind his chair ready to defend him should the CEDEF leader try to attack him anger.<p>

"My, we're talking a lot lately. I just saw you the other day. Did you forget to tell me something?"

The blond man seemed to be in a chipper mood. Obviously not suspecting anything. Timoteo sometimes wished Iemitsu had inherited his ancestors intuition, but today he was grateful that man wasn't aware that he was about to flip his world upside down.

"Yes actually, though I deliberately choose not to tell you in Tsuna's presence."

"Oh, top secret stuff, eh?" Iemitsu sat up straighter and became more serious.

"Well before we get to that, did you know Tsuna was injured in Weapons class today?"

"What?! Is he alright?"

Timoteo smiled gently at his concern before his face when blank again. "Yes, the boy is fine. The new recruits often get injured in some way. I thought you'd want to know, however because of the way he was hurt. Apparently due to the fighting of Rokudo Mukuro and Hibari Kyoya, Tsuna's roommate, Gokudera Hayato, was put into danger when he dropped his dynamite around him. Tsuna managed to activate his flames and push the other boy out of the way while taking the brunt of the explosion himself."

Iemitsu slumped and shook his head. "That boy is to kind for his own good."

"Indeed."

"So, what's his flame? Just out of curiosity."

"Sky."

The other man's eyes widened for a moment before he smiled. "That's my boy. So what did you want to tell me?"

Timoteo steeled himself for his next carefully chosen words.

"Iemitsu, you are aware of my current problems with my legs, correct?" The other man nodded, looking confused. "Along with my current lack of an heir? Sky flames are very rare…"

Iemitsu wasn't a dumb man he pieced it together immediately and launched himself at his elder. The guardians were ready for this, however, and pinned him down before he could do any damage.

"No! You can't choose Tsuna! He's not fit for that role! He to young! To kind hearted!" The man struggled fiercely against his captors to no avail. "It'll ruin him! You'll ruin him!"

Timoteo sighed and stood. He walked over to the man and knelt in front of him leaning heavily on his scepter.

"This was not an easy decision for me Iemitsu, but I have made my choice for the good of the Vongola. Please understand if there had been any other choice I wouldn't have taken it."

"What about Xanxus?!" Iemitsu questioned angrily.

"You know as well as I do, that he is not an option." He looked in the younger man's eyes. "Iemitsu, today Tsuna didn't simply activate his weapon. He went into Hyper Will Dying Mode without the aid of a bullet or pill in order to get to his friend in time to save him."

Iemitsu froze.

"T-That's impossible. Even I can't do that. No one can do that."

"Reborn saw it himself and it's said that the Vongola Primo could enter it with his powerful resolve alone."

Iemitsu didn't say anything. He wouldn't look at Timoteo and he took the chance to convince the confused man.

"From what Reborn has been telling me Tsuna may be clumsy and a little dense, but he has amazing potential. I have no doubt that he will make a wonderful Vongola Decimo."

"But at what cost?"

By Iemitsu's defeated tone he knew the other man will support his decision and would give his half of the Vongola rings when the times come. He didn't like it, but Iemitsu was very loyal to the Vongola. He placed his hand on the younger man's blond head.

"Only time will tell."

* * *

><p>As soon as class ended he was accosted by the people he had hung out with before Tsuna showed up. He would have felt slightly bad that he didn't remember any of their names if he wasn't so worried about his roommate. He had been in a spar himself and had his back turned to the incident. He wasn't all that worried and took his time regain his footing, explosions were a normal occurrence, but when the screaming started he began to worry.<p>

When he saw what the screams were about he became frantic. Gokudera was sitting on the ground by the scorched floor. The expression on his face was absolutely heartbreaking, but that's not what held his attention. No, it was Tsuna's unconscious body that horrified him. He wasn't sure what happened or how Tsuna was even over on that side of the room with Gokudera, but he couldn't take his eyes off of his burnt back.

"Everyone back away!"

Dino's shout seemed distant as Yamamoto stood there frozen. He watched as the medics ran over and immediately started healing Tsuna's back. He watch silently as the wounds healed slowly. Tsuna was given to Gokudera and they were shuffled out of the room by one of the medics while the other started making rounds to healing any injuries from the flying rubble and explosion.

After he managed to shake himself from his daze he tried to convince Dino to let him go see Tsuna, but the man was adamant in making him stay.

"Sawada saved Gokudera. Give them some time to sort things out. After class you can head over and see how he's doing."

It took a hand on the shoulder from Sasagawa for him not to run out of the room anyway. He was on edge the rest of the class period and couldn't concentrate on his spars leading to several defeats. He couldn't bring himself to care though, every time he blinked he saw Tsuna's broken body on the floor.

Yamamoto didn't hold back any more and pushed passed the people trying to talk to him. He took off down the hall dodging people and ignoring the occasional adult who told him to slow down. When he made it to the infirmary he was informed that Tsuna was sent back to his room once he was healed. He smiled and thanked the lady hoping his expression wasn't too strained before taking off toward the barracks.

He took the stairs two at a time and nearly ran head long into the Simon group. Luckily they jumped out of the way though Enma did fall over. He called out his apologizes as he turned the corner. He stopped when he reached the familiar door and took a deep breathe fearing for the worst he opened to the door.

He didn't know what he expected, but Gokudera and Tsuna chatting happily while sitting at the table wasn't it. He stood there staring as Tsuna turned his head and smiled at him. Yamamoto managed to give him a shaky smile in return as he slowly shut the door behind him and sat down on one of the cushions.

"Are you okay, Yamamoto?" Tsuna looked concerned while Gokudera raised an eyebrow at him.

"Am I okay…?" He trailed off while shaking his head. He caught the understanding look in Gokudera's eye and managed to pull himself together. "Yea, I'm fine. Haha don't worry about it, Tsuna, I was just worried you were okay."

"Tsk, the nurse took care of Tsuna-sama ages ago Baseball Idiot."

_Tsuna-sama?_

"Gokudera, don't be mean."

Yamamoto blinked, wondering when Tsuna started just called Gokudera by him name and not adding any honorifics at the end.

Tsuna smiled at him as Gokudera looked abashed by his comment. "It's okay Yamamoto. The healers took care of my wounds and I'm not even in pain anymore."

Yamamoto wondered if he was dreaming. He smiled at then hoping his eye wasn't twitching.

"Haha well that's good. What exactly happened?"

Tsuna seemed to catch onto his utter confusion and explained the whole incident with Gokudera's decision resulting from being saved by the smaller boy. Yamamoto smiled more genuinely at Tsuna's excitement over the fact that he managed to ignite his flame and Gokudera's praise of his magnificent skill. It looked like he was worried over nothing.

He watched them for a moment as Tsuna blushed bright red as Gokudera continued to praise him oblivious to Tsuna's embarrassment before bursting out laughing.

"What are you laughing about, Baseball Idiot!?" Gokudera's personality flipped in an instead and he had his dynamite out in seconds. "You better not be laughing at Tsuna-sama!"

"Ah Gokudera! Please don't!"

"Ahahaha S-Sorry, I'm just glad."

His explanation made the other two pause and look at him in confusion so he clarified.

"Everyone's getting along, and Tsuna stopped stuttering. I'm glad." He gave the two a large grin.

Gokudera looked away a little embarrassed and Tsuna grinned right back at him. Things started out a little bit rough, but hopeful it would be smoother from now on.

* * *

><p>Tsuna felt like he was walking on air. He watched as his two roommate argued with each other fondly. He wasn't even sure why they were arguing anymore, but he was glad that Gokudera didn't completely change. Having Gokudera open up a little and smile at him was great, but being called 'Tsuna-sama' and being treated like a king was a little weird. He hoped Gokudera grew out of it, because he really wanted to be the other boy's friend not his boss or something.<p>

He chuckled when Yamamoto laughed off Gokudera's threats and shook his head at the two. Gokudera may not emit it, but it was obvious to Tsuna that the two of them were friends. Complete opposite, yes. But friends all the same. He glanced at the clock on the wall, and found that they still had an hour or so before the cafeteria started serving dinner. He turned back to his roommate and was about to try and stop their argument only to blink in surprise.

"Ciaossu."

"Hiiieeee?! Reborn? When did you get here?" Tsuna fell back in surprise.

"The scream will have to go, a boss does not squeal like a little girl."

Yamamoto and Gokudera stopped fighting when they heard him scream and were looking at Reborn in confusion. Tsuna stared at the baby standing there on the table as if he owned it. He figured he wouldn't see the baby again.

"As for you question, I've been here since you were brought in unconscious."

"That long?!"

"Yes."

"Why?!"

Reborn simply blinked at him before turning to the other boys in the room. "Yamamoto Takashi, Gokudera Hayato what I am about to reveal is top secret. You may remain, but you will not repeat this information unless you are specifically told by the Ninth or myself. Is that understood?"

"Haha…Okay."

"Understood."

They both looked a little apprehensive, but agreed anyway. Reborn nodded and turned back to Tsuna. He gulped a little wondering what was this secret and how did it concern him.

"Dame-Tsuna." He winced at the nickname, Gokudera bristled, and Yamamoto frowned, but Reborn ignored them. "What do you know of current Vongola politics?"

Tsuna frowned. "Um, nothing."

Reborn nodded. "As expected. Gokudera, what do you know?"

Gokudera straitened and though for a moment before answering.

"Well quite a few people are saying that the Ninth is getting soft and he needs a new heir."

"Do you know what happened to the other heirs?"

"They were killed."

Reborn pulled out three pictures and Tsuna went very pale. "That is correct. The first heir and oldest of the Ninth's sons was shot in the head. The second heir, Massimo, was drowned, and all that was left of the third heir, Federico, was some bones."

"Hiiieeee!"

"There is a fourth son, but due to certain circumstances he is not eligible. Therefore there isn't an heir."

"Ahaha Wow that's kind-of scary, but why are you telling us this?"

Yamamoto's smiled was a little strained, and Tsuna could tell the pictures had an effect on him.

"Because the Vongola needs an heir in order to continue. However, only one with sky flames can be even qualified and sky flames are extremely rare."

Gokudera caught on the quickest and his eyes widened. "But the heir also needs to have the Vongola blood. That's another qualification."

His voice was slightly desperate making Tsuna turn look at him worriedly. He didn't understand what was going on. Why was Gokudera panicky? Why did Yamamoto suddenly go serious?

Reborn nodded at Gokudera and pulled out a long weather worn piece of paper. "Tsuna already knows this, but I'll show the two of you since you're upset."

He showed them what was on the paper and started to explain. "The Vongola's first boss retired early and crossed over into the dimension that Tsuna was born into. He is the great, great, great, great grandfather of Tsuna. Making him apart of the Vongola bloodline and therefore a legitimate boss candidate."

"Hiiieee?! What!? Me!?"

Tsuna felt like he was going to faint. That is until he was kicked in the head by a small foot.

"Don't be so loud, there are other people on either side of this room."

"Tsuna-sama!"

"Tsuna!"

Tsuna rubbed his head; the pain helped significantly in getting rid of the panic.

"I'm okay." He smiled at his worried roommates, before turning to Reborn. "Um, Reborn I really don't think this is a good idea. I mean I'm not fit for being a boss. Don't you remember all the things you said to me before? About my faults?"

"Your right. You're not fit, yet. However, the Ninth has asked me to tutor you and I will make you boss material."

Tsuna frowned. This didn't seem possible. In fact he was seriously starting to think that this was a dream.

"This is not a dream, Dame-Tsuna. The Vongola Ninth has chosen you as his newest heir."

"But the rest of the heirs…" Gokudera was frowning deeply.

"They didn't have me as a tutor."

"There isn't a way out of this is there?" Yamamoto looked resigned.

"No. The Ninth has made his decision."

Everyone paused when Reborn's stomach rumble.

"Well it's time for dinner." He jumped off the table and headed for the door. "Training begins tomorrow. You will attend classes like normal except for Weapons since we want to keep your flame a secret for your own protection. During the Weapons classes you will follow me to another training center. If you try and run I'll shoot you."

With that the baby was gone leaving the room in an awkward silence. Tsuna hung his head. Why was it just when he was starting to accept everything and enjoy life in this place something new and scary was sprung up on him?

"Hmmm." Tsuna looked up at Yamamoto who was staring at him intently.

"Yama…?" Tsuna wasn't even able to finish his friends name before the other boy spoke.

"I can see it!"

"Eh?" Tsuna blinked.

"What that hell are you talking about?!"

Yamamoto smiled at them. "I was a little worried and angry at first, but thinking about I can actually see Tsuna as a boss."

"Of course Tsuna-sama would make a wonderful boss! I'm just worried about his health! You saw those pictures; Tsuna-sama would have a very high chance of ending up like them!"

"Yeah, but Tsuna will have what those guys didn't." Yamamoto grinned and slung an arm around Gokudera's shoulders. "Us!"

"Ehhh?" Tsuna was now even more worried. What was Yamamoto talking about?

"We'll protect him and make sure he's not assassinated! If we keep him safe from harm and Reborn teaches him what he needs to know then I'm sure Tsuna will become a great Vongola Decimo."

"Yamamoto! I don't think…."

"Ha, The Baseball Idiot finally said something smart!"

"What?! Not you too, Gokudera!"

The silver haired boy knelt in front of him.

"Please, 10th , allow me to be you right hand man!"

"What?!"

"Haha I want to be his right hand man too!"

"Idiot! There can only be one right man and that's me!"

"Why not?"

Tsuna sighed as they continued arguing down the hall. He wasn't sure what it was about. He got a headache when he tried to figure it out since they kept switching topics so quickly. Tsuna wondered if Yamamoto did it on purpose. Surly the boy wasn't as much as an idiot as he made himself out to be?

They continued down the hallways to the cafeteria, and got their food. Onii-san was already there with two other girls so they joined them. The white haired boxer gave him a once over before grinning and slapping his back gently.

"Hahi! Who's this?" The brown haired girl with her hair pulled back into a pony tailed asked Ryohei as they sat down.

"EH?! Oh that's Sawada, to the EXTREME!"

The lighter haired girl smiled at the loud boy. "Nii-san, what have I said about keeping your voice down?"

"Sorry, Kyoko! I will extremely try!"

Tsuna smiled at the other boy. He really was a nice guy. "I didn't know you had a sister, Sasagawa."

"Yes! I extremely do! This is my sister Kyoko and her friend Haru!"

Tsuna and Yamamoto greeted them politely while Gokudera tsked.

"Hahi! Are you the boy who got hurt today, Sawada-san?" The newly dubbed Haru pointed at him looking concerned. "We heard a rumor at the infirmary someone named Sawada got hurt in weapons today."

"Oh, yeah I remember now. Are you okay Sawada-san?" Kyoko not only looked completely different, but also had a much softer voice than her brother

Tsuna smiled at both girls concern. "Yeah, I'm fine now. Thanks for your concern, and you can just call me Tsuna."

They all continued chattering throughout dinner, and had a fun time. Tsuna had to stop a few fight between Gokudera and Yamamoto, and some more between Gokudera and Onii-san, and strangely enough even more between Gokudera and Haru. But other than that Tsuna had a blast. It seemed like his circle of friends was continuing to grow and he loved it.

By the time they were parting way, the girls to their own room on the female side of the barracks, and Ryohei to his room further down the hall from them, Tsuna was ready to collapse in his bed and sleep. He wondered how Yamamoto and Gokudera still had the strength to keep up their bickering, but decided not to ask.

When they walked into their shared room Tsuna was surprised to find some things on his bed. A new bag to carry the supplies in and some of his old possessions. His eyes became misty when he picked up the picture of his mother and him. His handmade orange and white throw blanket, with little lions on it, from his mother, and small dream catcher from Kawahira along with a few of his favorite manga's. He picked up the note on top of his blanket and smiled gently at the message.

_Reborn mentioned you not taking anything here, so I had one of my subordinates pick up some things he said was important to you. I'll be away for the next month or so, on a long mission, but we should definitely get together after I come back. There's a lot I want to know about my dear son. _

_~Iemitsu_

That night when they were all sitting around the table again, Tsuna told them about his meeting with his father the other day and about the note. They sensed the mood and didn't say anything as he told his little tale. When he was done Yamamoto smiled at him and Gokudera patted him on the shoulder, his eyes soft. Without a word they went to bed. Despite his worry over being chosen as the next heir and fear for his life he was happy as he pulled his familiar orange and white throw over himself.

He had friends who cared about him, a father who was trying to mend their bond and a place he could call his home. Right now he was the happiest he ever remembered being in his fourteen years of living.

* * *

><p><strong>Alrighty another chapter posted. I'll post one or two more today before posting the rest tomorrow. :D<strong>

**Reviews~**

**_crimsonarrows~_ Thanks for the review! Of course he will, but its a process. A long one that involves him being dragged by his ear. No one can resisted Tsuna's sweetness for too long. **

**_Nastu Yuuki~_ Thanks for the review! I'm glad you like it! :D Don't worry everything will be posted tomorrow. Maybe a little late in the day, but definitely tomorrow.**

**_(Ch. 1 ) Kyogre~_ Thanks for the review! Yes, I did change that. Honestly, I'm with you in that regard. Looking back on it I wasn't sure what made me write that in, I think it might have been important to my original story this idea was based off of, but it didn't really fit with khr, did it? For now Kurokawa was a bit a flavor, but I'm thinking of involving her later down the road. I really like her, but it depends on whether she'll fit into the plot or not. XD Yeah, unfortunately that is a mistake I make very often. I'll go back and fix that. **


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: Still don't own it. **

* * *

><p>Tsuna was at that strange stage where he was both a sleep and awake. He had stopped dreaming, but was still unable to wake himself completely. He vaguely wondered what had forced his lovely dream to come to a halt, but could only find a small warning in the back of his head that said he should really wake up, right now. He frowned sleepily at that strange feeling and was about to drift off again when it happened.<p>

His third day at the Vongola start with a shock, literally.

"HHHIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

A small foot to the face made him stop screaming and choke in surprise.

"A true Vongola boss wakes at five exactly every morning."

At the sound of Reborn's high pitch voice he groaned. Why was that baby here?

"I told you training starts today."

Tsuna slowly sat up wondering what he did to deserve this cruelty. "Why couldn't you have woken me normally? Besides that our classes don't start till 8:00!"

"It a traditional Vongola waking method and as I said before Dame-Tsuna a boss should wake at 5:00 exactly each morning. If you fail to do so I'll shoot you." A book was tossed at his head. "Also read a chapter every morning I'll quiz you on the contents every couple of days."

Tsuna looked down at the book with slight apprehension. The large text in his lap seemed daunting. It was titled: _The Customs and Manners of a Vongola Boss. _

"Eh!? This sort of book exists!?"

"Of course, the third boss of the Vongola fancies himself a writer and wrote this for his heir and future generations."

"Oh, wow."

"Now go untie your friends and get ready."

"Eh?"

Tsuna looked across the room and found his two friends tied up and gagged on the floor. Gokudera looked pathetic his eye pleaded Tsuna to forgive him while Yamamoto looked like he's be laughing right now if he wasn't gagged.

"Hiieee! Reborn!"

He looked for the culprit only to find him gone. He sighed heavily. Is this what mornings would be like from now on? He dreaded it.

After calming Gokudera down, who was almost in tears apologizing, the three of them got dress and ready like Reborn said and sat down to wait until 6:30 for the cafeteria to open. He found another ring on the table with a note from the Ninth explaining that it was an unmarked sky ring so no one would know he had sky flames and realize he was the Vongola Heir. After moping for a few minutes about the how unfair the whole situation was Tsuna started to read his book, which he found out was rather dry. It literally was all of the customs and manners a Vongola boss was supposed to have in different situations. He managed to finish the first chapter with difficulty and dreaded reading the rest much less being quizzed on it.

The three of them were some of the first people their including Mukuro and his little gang. He shuttered slightly when Mukuro's eyes landed on him for a moment and sighed in relief when they moved on to examine some other unfortunate soul. It was strange though, almost as if the scary boy was searching for something, or someone. He shook his head and continued forward. He felt bad for whoever the other boy was looking for, but it was none of his business.

Onii-san, his sister Kyoko and her friend Haru soon joined them and Tsuna forgot all about Mukuro.

"Let's go for another walk in the forest!" Onii-san paused to shove some food in his mouth, chew and swallow. "Since Octopus head missed the last one."

Gokudera opened his mouth to retort to the name, before looking away.

Tsuna smiled at the other boy, and shook his head not knowing what Reborn had planned for him. "Maybe another time…"

"Sounds like a great idea."

Tsuna gapped. The baby was not there a second ago! And he was stealing Tsuna's food!

"Hey! That's mine!" He stared in horror as the rest of his breakfast was taken in a blink of an eye.

"It's a harsh and cruel world. You'll have to be quicker if you want to eat."

"How cute!" Kyoko and Haru squealed and gushed over Reborn until the little devil left as quickly as he came reminding Tsuna that he would pick him up after lunch.

"Who was that Tsuna-kun?" Kyoko's eyes were practically glittering, but he didn't know how to respond.

What should he tell them?

"Hahaha He's Tsuna's new tutor." Yamamoto jumped in to save him much to his relief.

"Tsuna-sama caught Reborn's attention with his potential so he decided to train Tsuna-sama himself." Gokudera added quickly when the girls were about to ask another question.

"Wow Tsuna you must be powerful." Kyoko smiled at him.

"We got scouted by the infirmary since Kyoko has some powerful healing capabilities with her sun flames and I've got some potential with my mist flames, but we've been here for a while so that's normal. You only got here a few days ago right?" Haru looked very impressed.

"Haha That's still impressive! Is that why you're not in classes with us?"

"Yup, all of the new recruits who were scouted are being privately taught classes geared more toward the medical field since that's what we're going into." Kyoko looked excited about the prospect of being a healer and the girl started to talk more about their classes.

They chatted some more before heading to class. Tsuna was looking forward to actually attending his morning classes today and wrapped his hand around the strap of his new bag. It was a black shoulder bag with the Vongola crest sewed on the flap in gold colored thread.

The math teacher greeted him warmly asking how he was feeling. Apparently word of his injury had traveled around among the teachers. He smiled and told her that he was fine now. She nodded and told him to be more careful during Weapons class. To which he laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his head. He would no longer have to worry about Weapons class, but he was scared of what torture Reborn might put him through especially after this morning.

They settled down in the same formation as yesterday and waited for the rest of the class to show up. Tsuna was a little worried when that Enma person came in with even more bandages than yesterday. Gokudera assured him that was a common occurrence, but that didn't really help much.

His friends were wonderful though and when Davis-sensei let them work together on the practice questions on the board they immediately started helping him out. Gokudera seemed to be trying to make up for the days he left Tsuna to fend for himself by answering every possible question and working him through each problem step by step. Tsuna would never be great or even good at it, but between Yamamoto and Gokudera he could understand a little bit.

As lunch rolled by Tsuna started to get a nervous twitch in his left eye and his stomach churned restlessly as he realized that he would be left to Reborn's tender mercies right after lunch. He wasn't looking forward to it after this morning's wake up call. It also reminded him of the fact that he was apparently now the Vongola heir, which he had been trying to forget since he had learn of it. He understood that his flame was rare and that all of the bosses have had the sky flame for, whatever reason, but they seemed to be ignored his obvious faults. There was no way he could be a leader of anyone especially a powerful organization like the Vongola.

When his new friends tried to comfort him and assure him that he'll be alright and Reborn won't outright kill him he tried to look less hysterical to no avail.

"Ciaossu."

"Hiiee! Reborn!"

Tsuna wanted to die right then and there when the baby's eyes turned on him. A scary smirk graced Reborn's lips and Tsuna didn't want to be left to his mercy. His mental pleading didn't work, however, and before he knew it his friends were waving him off cheerfully as Reborn led him away.

He wanted to cry.

He didn't though mostly out of fear. Despite his small size Reborn scared him witless.

They weaved their wave through the different hallways, out into the courtyard and into the main building until they reach a large door. Reborn shoved him inside the large white room before slamming the door behind him. Tsuna shivered in fear as the baby turned to him smirking.

"Dame-Tsuna…" Tsuna held back a scream at the pure joy in the babies' voice. "Since you are completely useless in everything that has to do with fighting we'll have to start with building your stamina, speed and strength to a decent level before beginning the real training."

"B-but I d-don't want t-to f-fight." Tsuna's stutter made a return and Tsuna wanted to slap himself for how pathetic he sounded.

Reborn simply raised an eyebrow. "The Vongola Boss is supposed to be the most powerful person in the organization."

"B-but…"

His protests were useless as Reborn would hear none of it and sent him running after his pet lizard, the very same lizard he saw in kawahiras' shop, that could apparently turn into a small race car. Reborn called it training, but with the constant bullets bombarding him and the ever elusive Leo, Tsuna called it torture.

Twenty minute later found Tsuna collapsed on the ground panting and about ready to pass out. His had numerous cuts on his body from stray bullets and his palms were raw from falling down. Reborn was recounting his failures making Tsuna feel worse and worse as he continued.

Despite his exhaustion he did jump when a loud bang echoed through the room along with a small boy. Tsuna blinked fairly certain he had passed out and was now dreaming. After all it's not every day you see a child wearing a cow print shirt and had an afro nearly as big as the kid himself.

"Gahahaha Prepare yourself, Reborn! Today is the day Lambo will kill you!" This threat was followed through with small pink grenades flying toward Reborn.

Tsuna had to rub his eyes and pinch himself as he slowly realized that this wasn't a dream. The odd child really did pull those grenades from his afro. Reborn seemed to take the whole thing well enough. He simply ignored the boy and swatted the grenades away when they got to close. Tsuna watched in horror as the child went flying in to the wall after being hit with his own weapons.

The explosions shook the ground and Tsuna jumped up forgetting his exhaustion and ran over what he thought was the smoking remains of the poor child Reborn just killed. He was surprised, however to find the boy sobbing uncontrollably but otherwise in one piece. He had some burns and bruises here and there, but he was otherwise fine. Tsuna couldn't believe it.

"Are you okay?"

He reached out to the crying boy and patted his head awkwardly. The boy sniffed loudly and looked up at him with wide green eyes that still held many more tears.

"Lambo-san is fine. Lambo-san must have tripped." He seemed to perk up, but tears still rolled down his cheeks. "Yes! The great Lambo, nine years old, tripped!"

Tsuna wasn't sure how to reply to that and so he introduced himself instead. "So your name is Lambo? My name is Tsuna it's nice to meet you."

His smiled was a tad uncertain due to the circumstances of the kid's arrival, but he boy didn't seem to notice. He was looking at Tsuna with large eyes, his cheeks still tear streaked. Tsuna tried to remember what his mom used to do when he cried and decided to wipe away the tears.

"Are you in pain? I can take you to the infirmary if you want me too. Those are some pretty nasty bruises and burns."

He was getting a little nervous when the child didn't say anything, but continued to stare up at him. He tried to ignore the stare and examined the boy's clothes. They consisted of a cow print tee-shirt and some jeans with a pair of beat up tennis shoes. He frowned at the state of the clothing and wondered if anyone ever bothered to tell the boy that wandering around with tears and holes in his jeans and shirts wasn't good.

"Leave him alone Dame-Tsuna. We still have your training to complete."

Tsuna frowned at Reborn. "He got hurt because of you. No, I'm taking Lambo to the infirmary and then were going to get him a change of clothes."

An eyebrow was raised and Tsuna flinched. "Hiieee! Uh I'm m-mean, I s-sorry R-Reborn!"

"Whatever Dame-Tsuna. Do what you wish, but remember training tomorrow will be ten times worse."

With that the baby disappeared leaving a distraught Tsuna and a still staring Lambo.

"Hiiieee I'm going to die!"

He took a shaking breath and turned back to Lambo. "Uh, well I guess we should head over there, yeah?"

He pulled the boy into a standing position and led him out of the training room by his hand. He had no idea where the infirmary was, but he hoped there were signs or at least someone he could ask for directions. After wandering a few minutes in silence Tsuna spotted young red haired woman. She smirked and gave them directions before moving on muttering about a new recipe or something. The boys silence was unnerving especially since he was shouting so loud earlier, but Tsuna tried not to let it bother him.

"Can I call you Tsuna-nii?"

"Eh?" He looked down at the boy in shock, but Lambo was looking away. Tsuna noticed his red ears peeking out from his curling afro and smiled. "Sure go ahead."

"Gahahaha Lambo now has an Onii-san and is one step closer in his plans of world domination!"

Tsuna chuckled as Lambo jumped for joy, his grin nearly splitting his small face. He reminded Tsuna of Gokudera a little. Both of them tended to be very loud as if they wanted the world to think they didn't need them, but deep down they were lonely. Tsuna could tell from the state Lambo was in and the fact that he hadn't complained about being in pain despite the burns and bruises that injuries were common for the younger boy. He frowned. He didn't like it when kids were hurt. Why was he even here anyway? And why did he try to kill Reborn?

"Lambo, why did you try to kill Reborn?" He decided to go with the second question since Yamamoto and Gokudera did say the new recruits were getting younger.

"Lambo-san if always being pick on 'cause he's young so Lambo thought that if he kill Reborn who was younger than him but more respected then people would respect him like they do Reborn!"

Tsuna shook his head at the child logic. "Lambo, I think Reborn is older than he looks and even if he wasn't he's still very strong. How many times has he dismissed you like he did today?"

Lambo shuffled his feet while looking away.

"Not only that, but killing is wrong and young kids like you should have such dangerous weapons."

Lambo frowned and looked up at him angrily. "Tsuna-nii is the same as everyone else! Looking down on Lambo just 'cause he's young!"

Tsuna smiled gently and knelt down to the others height. "I'm not looking down on you Lambo. I'm worried about you. You're covered in burn and bruises and I'm worried that if you continue trying to kill Reborn or tossing those grenades around that you could get seriously injured."

Lambo looked confused and Tsuna decided to drop it for today. "Come on the infirmary is just down the next hall."

He tugged the boy along and managed to get him patched up by one of the nurses. The nurse also healed all of his scratches from his training. Afterward they headed back to the barracks to get Lambo changed into some hopefully less damaged cloths. Tsuna learned that the younger children had an entire wing on the first floor with their rooms, a large play room, a small cafeteria and rooms for the caretakers. Lambo tugged him along telling him all about it.

He also learned that Lambo had a roommate the same age as him named Fuuta, and played with a girl names I-pin often. He smiled at how excited Lambo got when talking about his friends and allowed the younger boy to drag him to his room without a fuss.

Tsuna had to hold in a laugh when he saw the deplorable state of the room. Cloths and toys and weapons littered the floor. The bed that Lambo said was his wasn't made and had crumbs on the pillow. Tsuna shook his head feeling bad for the person who had to clean this room and for the other boy who lived here since all of the stuff seemed to be Lambo's judging by what he could decipher from the boys excited babbling. He glanced over at the other bed in the room. It was neatly made. He held back another chuckle.

Unfortunately Tsuna couldn't talk the boy out of wearing another cow print shirt, but he won his battle against the awful cow print pants. He buttoned up Lambo's shirt for him when he saw him struggling and they left the room. Tsuna looked at the clock and nearly panicked when he saw the time.

"Ah! Lambo I have to go to my next class." He smiled down at the boy when he started to protest. "It'll be over with at 2:00 and my friends and I were planning to go for a walk in the forest. Would you like to come?"

He wasn't sure if it was okay for the younger ones, but the way Lambo's eyes glittered in delight and how the smaller boy hugged him tightly made him not care. He waved as he jogged down the hallway still feeling extremely sore, but not willing to be late when his friends were waiting for him.

Luckily he made it there in time and quickly moved over to his friends who greeted him enthusiastically. He laughed off Gokudera's concern over his ripped clothing and turned his attention to the teachers. The coaches explained what they were doing today and Tsuna was reminded strongly of dodge ball. Though the balls in questions were a lot larger and heavier than the small soft ones they used at his old school. Tsuna had a bad feeling about this.

The feeling was not unfounded at he was hit the minute the game started. He wanted to give up and go sit in a corner, but unlike at school you weren't out when the ball hit you. This was a test of speed, endurance, and strength. The teachers shout out ways to improve one's stance and aim as the two teams continued to throw the balls at one another relentlessly.

Tsuna was even more bruised by the end of the class and wanted to go curl up in a corner. His classmates had come to the realization early on that he was the weakest link and the other team exploited that mercilessly. Luckily he had Onii-san and Yamamoto on his team and Gokudera threw a fit every time one of his teammates his 'precious Tsuna-sama' but he was still hit a lot.

He limped out of the class with his friends who didn't look nearly as beaten up at him. He wouldn't lie. He was a little jealous. He doubted Onii-san even broke a sweat. They grabbed some water from the cafeteria before heading outside much to Tsuna's displeasure.

"Gahahaha Your late Tsuna-nii, but Lambo will forgive you this once as long as you kneel down and apologize!"

Tsuna smiled at the sight of the young boy in front of them and noticed that he had brought along two other kids. Tsuna assumed they were Fuuta and I-pin.

"What!? Who are you, brat?! Why are you here?! How dare you order Tsuna-sama to kneel down?!"

Tsuna laughed and put his hand on Gokudera's tense shoulder. "It's okay Gokudera. This is Lambo I met him when I was training with Reborn today. I invited him to go with us."

He turned to Lambo. "Sorry, we're late we went to get some water. Who are your friends?"

Lambo seemed to forget all about the whole kneeling thing and introduce the slightly taller blond boy as Fuuta and the small Chinese girl as I-pin. Everyone greeted them even Gokudera after Tsuna nudged him and they set off for the trails.

"Haha Wow Tsuna you make friends quickly."

"Tsuna-nii isn't Lambo's friend he's Lambo's minion."

Lambo's reply made Yamamoto laugh and Gokudera bristle. Onii-san had already run ahead and both Fuuta and I-pin seemed unsure of them still. Tsuna smiled at them hoping to get them to open up a little and Fuuta gave him a small smile in return.

"I saw Lambos' and your room." Tsuna's smile turned into a grin. "The cleaning lady hasn't been around in a while has she?"

Fuuta's smiled got bigger and he shyly replied. "She gave up a while ago."

Tsuna laughed and was joined by Fuuta much to the displeasure of Lambo who looked slightly disgruntled that his mess was being made fun of. He glared at Fuuta.

"Hey, Tsuna-nii is Lambo's Onii-san not Fuuta's."

"Why can't he be mine too?"

"Because!"

"That's not an answer!"

"Haha Tsuna they're fighting over you. How cute."

Gokudera tsked and looked away from the two having decided he didn't like Lambo and children in general.

Tsuna shook his head at the two. "Hey, hey come on both of you can call me Tsuna-nii, okay?"

He waved his hands around trying to calm the two boys. They calmed down a little and smiled at him. He smiled in relief glad they could be so easily sated. A tug at his shirt made him look down at the third child that joined them.

"Can I-pin call Tsuna, Tsuna-nii too?"

He smiled at her. "Of course."

They continued onward through the trail occasionally joined by Onii-san. Everything was fine until things started to float.

"Hiiee! What's going on?!"

Tsuna watched in horror as the sticks, rocks and leaves started floating to however around him. Gokudera looked just as freaked-out as him, but Yamamoto was still grinning. Lambo and I-pin looked unfazed despite floating a few feet above the ground.

"Tsuna-nii ranks number one for not being able to turn someone down."

Tsuna glanced at Fuuta in disbelief. "What?! Fuuta…what's going on?"

Fuuta looked up from writing something down in a book that seemed to come from nowhere at him sheepishly.

"Sorry for frightening you Tsuna-nii. I just wanted to show you something neat since you've been so kind to us." He looked down at his book. "Most of the other new recruits look down on us."

Guilt tripped out of his freak-out Tsuna smiled kindly at the younger boy. "It's fine Fuuta, but a little warning next time would be nice. What did you anyway?"

"I have the ability to rank things. They're always right except when it rains."

"Haha, That's so cool!" Yamamoto looked excited while Gokudera was trying not to look interested.

Fuuta grinned at the boy. "Yup, they haven't quite figured out how or why I can do it, but the Vongola took me in when they found out. I'm just happy I can do all the ranking I can want now."

Tsuna had a feeling that Fuuta wasn't even mentioning half of it, but he didn't question the kid. It was obvious he was happy now.

"Do you mind doing some more for us? Like Yamamoto said it's really cool."

Fuuta grinned and nodded before his eyes glazed over and he continued his ranking for them.

He was apparently number one for no ambition. It also was a given that he had the lowest endurance, speed and strength in all of the Vongola. He wasn't surprised to hear that. However to be ranked number one in those categories kind-of sounded pathetic. Gokudera tried to assure him the first two were good traits to have, but Tsuna thought he was just happy to be ranked number six in the list of the strongest recruits. Yamamoto was five despite not having activated his rain ring yet and Onii-san was seventh.

Tsuna kept an eye out for Reborn, but never did see him. He wondered why the baby would give up a great chance to torture him, but decided to just count himself lucky when they headed back and he hadn't shown up.

Dinner was a hectic affair since the kids refused to leave them and make their already loud table even louder with their shouts and laughter. Lambo was the main instigator in this and while Fuuta tried to laugh it off, I-pin would often try to fight the other boy to make him stop hogging or stealing the food. This of course led to some explosions and more and more people moving away from their table. Kyoko and Haru of course found no fault in the children, but Gokudera disliked Lambo greatly. Their arguments were some of the loudest.

Even so Tsuna couldn't help, but laugh with Yamamoto and the girls as he watched them. He wouldn't mind if their meals were as lively as this even though they got scolded for making such a ruckus.

Tsuna went to bed smiling again not know the danger lurking just around the corner.

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><p>"Your report?"<p>

"Tsuna is woefully pathetic at everything physical, but that can be corrected given time."

Timoteo nodded having expected as much. Tsuna wasn't a fighter that was obvious to anyone who saw the boy. Under any other circumstances, if the boy had a different flame he would have probably ended up as a healer or an informant instead of fighting directly.

"He does, however, have the uncanny ability to draw the oddest of people to him."

"Hmmm?"

"You know that Bovino child?"

Timoteo looked up. "Lambo Bovino. You mean the child that seems to have made it his life goal to kill you?"

Reborn nodded. "Yes. He tried another assassination attempt today and within ten minutes Tsuna had the boy calling him Tsuna-nii and allowing Tsuna to drag him to the infirmary."

Timoteo blinked in shock. He often received complaints about the child. He was unruly, loud and never let anyone tell him what to do. The damage the child's weapons caused gave him stacks more paperwork to work on before bed. But no matter how many times his people took them away from him he always got more.

"Not only that, but the cow's friends Fuuta and I-pin are calling him Tsuna-nii as well."

Timoteo shook his head. "Impressive. You've already told me about his other friends, Yamamoto, Gokudera and Sasagawa. All three of them have been noted for their skill. They will no doubt be powerful guardians for Tsuna."

"Yes, and he's also made friends with Sasagawa's sister Kyoko and her friend Haru Miura. The teachers in the medical ward have been singing their praises recently."

Timoteo nodded. He was still worried about the boy, but with the people he was surrounding himself with Timoteo knew he'd make it through Reborn's training and become a wonderful boss. He just hoped that their enemy would give the boy enough time to grow before making their move. He also hoped Xanxus would respect his decision and not attack the boy. Deep down, however, he knew these hoped were in vain.

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><p><strong>Hmm, I don't really have anything to say here. Well I'll just move onto the reviews. <strong>

**crimsonarrows~ Thanks for the review! I'll go search for that. XD I'll probably update evening-ish time for me. Of course it may be different for other people with the different time zones and all. **

**(Ch. 2) Kyogre~ Thanks for the review! Yeah, it was a cheap shot, but Byakuran was bored. Tsuna didn't really process it. Just shoved it under too scary to think about in the back of his mind. The potential candidates didn't really matter, though Mochida was one of them. Members of the CEDEF will/have looked after Nana since she's their bosses wife. They didn't help 'cause Reborn told them to shove off when he arrived and realized the new recruit was Tsuna. I thought about writing a oneshot from their perspective, but I never got around to it. Hmm, I may play around with that. Thanks for the suggestion!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: Nope**

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><p>Tsuna smiled as Gokudera and Lambo fought over something trivial while Yamamoto was trying to calm them down. Yesterday was nice despite Reborn's method of wake-up calls and training. The kids were an interesting inclusion to their group though he had a feeling their caretakers hated him now. They shot him annoyed looks as the kids pushed their way into the cafeteria and sat with them this morning instead of staying in their wing of the building. He was also fairly certain everyone else in the cafeteria hated him for all the noise his friends made as well. For once though he didn't mind. His friends were a little weird and loud, but he didn't mind at least they didn't hurt each other. Just threatened and shouted at each other loudly…<p>

He felt bad for Yamamoto and Gokudera though. It seemed the first day wasn't a one-time thing and Reborn intended to wake him up in horrible ways every morning. Tsuna woke to freezing water today and had to untie his traumatized roommates again. Well, Gokudera was traumatized Yamamoto just laughed it off.

Tsuna was fairly certain that Reborn was a spawn of the devil sent from the underworld to torture him continually in the guise of tutoring him. Tsuna was brought out of his depressing thoughts when Lambo brought out his grenades and tried to blow-up Gokudera. He got the feeling convincing the child violence wasn't the answer to everything would be difficult, especially with Gokudera around.

"Lambo! Gokudera! Enough!"

With that disaster averted with no help from Yamamoto, Sasagawa or the girls they finished breakfast and went their separate ways. Tsuna smiled and greeted Hamment-sensei who smiled in return before going back to her lecture notes and making a few last minute changes.

When class started Tsuna paid attention and took notes hoping that he could do better here than he did back in Namimori or even when he was upset over Gokudera's outburst. Much to his surprise the teachers words actual stuck to him instead of going in one ear and out the next.

When History rolled around he learned that while there were many organizations fighting the Millefiore the Vongola was by far the largest and most powerful. However, despite the ability to stand on its own the Vongola allowed many smaller families to fall under its umbrella and fight for the cause without completely integrating. He also learned that each boss had six guardians. One for each of the different flames. He had already read about it in his book, but it was interesting to hear it explained in a clearer manner with more modern terms and language.

He wrote down everything and by the time History had ended his hand was cramping.

He grimaced slightly when Nezu-sensei entered the room. Out of all the teachers so far he disliked this man the most. Hamment-sensei was kind and explained things simply and easily encouraging questions and answering them completely.

The history teacher, Felinco-sensei was more of a lecturer. He didn't like a lot of questions, but he explained everything so well that there wasn't much need for any aside from some clarifications. The math teacher, Davis-sensei, was so passionate about her subject paying attention was easy, even if he did understand it very well. It was obvious that they were dedicated and loved their job and Tsuna respected that. He hoped that he would find a job he loved someday, but with the whole Vongola boss thing he wasn't sure he'd ever be able too. Even the KYE teacher who Tsuna unfortunately forgot the name of and the Language teacher who obviously wasn't that interested in the students was better in Tsuna's eyes than Nezu-sensei.

Nezu-sensei had none of the passion or kindness and only seemed to love lording over the younger student with his greater knowledge. Tsuna had come across many of these types of people during his days at Namimori. They were often the cruelest to him.

He winced slightly as Enma was mercilessly picked on due to his inability to answer Nezu-sensei's question quickly enough. Tsuna really wished he had the guts to stand up for the poor boy who remained Tsuna of himself, but his tongue suddenly felt like lead. He looked down at the desk in shame.

The class continued in this manner for the next fifty minutes and Tsuna wished that it would just end. Nezu-sensei would suddenly shout of questions and whoever was unfortunate enough to be picked and not know the answer was belittled. Enma was the victim for most of these questions, but other students were also picked on. Longchamp seemed to be the only one capable of laughing Nezu-sensei's insults off and often volunteered despite not knowing the answer to the questions being asked. Tsuna noticed that Mukuro and his gang were left alone and strangely enough so was he.

Several times it looked like Nezu-sensei was going to call on him and Tsuna prepared himself for imminent belittlement, but it never came. He just shrugged it off not noticing Gokudera's deadly glare or how Yamamoto's smile got a touch threatening whenever the teacher turned his eye on him. Tsuna counted it as a blessing and threw himself into learning the material. He was excited to realize that without any teacher or other students breathing down his next and whispering cruel words in his ear he actually understood most of it.

He'd have to ask Gokudera or Yamamoto to clarify a few formulas and explain a couple of other concepts, but he could figure the rest out on his own. By the end of class he was a mix of feeling proud of himself and disgusted by the teacher who was currently reprimanding Enma.

The four of them passed the Simon group and Tsuna once again had an internal conflict. This time it was resolved for him by Nezu-sensei's next words.

"You'll never get anywhere in life. People like you will remain useless and no good for the rest of your life always being a burden on the rest of us successful people."

His steps froze immediately as anger rose within him. He felt his ring heat up, but he didn't care.

"Tell me Sensei how to you define success? Do you consider yourself successful?" He never thought his voice could be as cold as it was right then. He felt strange, like he wasn't really in control of his actions or words and yet he was.

Nezu-sensei stiffed and turned to him anger flashing in his eyes. Tsuna felt Gokudera and Yamamoto shift closer to him both their eyes were sharp and dangerous. Even Onii-san was frowning at the shrinking teacher. Tsuna raised a hand letting them know that he'd take care of it and their demeanor immediately changed. The teacher immediately regained his confidence and smirked at him.

"Of course I'm successful. I have a master's degree in teaching and a PhD in science. Not to mention I'm working for the Vongola. That makes me successful."

He seemed so smug it was sickening, but Tsuna simply started at him blandly.

"So all of your achievements automatically means you have the right to judge others and belittle them in front of their peers?"

Nezu-sensei opened his mouth, but Tsuna frowned and he shut it with a snap.

"I am no expert _Sensei_, but I don't believe someone who stands in front of young students and tears apart their self-esteem is very successful. In fact I think that only make them cowardly and disgusting human beings. I don't know how a person like you managed to get a job as a teacher, but I can assure you it will be ending quickly if I have anything to say about it. If I have to go to the Vongola Ninth himself then I will."

With that he turned on his heel and marched off feeling both elated for standing up to a bully and scared to death because he insulted and talked back to a teacher. His ring practically hummed where it rested still warm from his earlier anger. He felt a little sick. What had come over him? Why did he act like that? He was never so calm much less able to deliver cutting responses like he was in charge. He gripped his hair and tugged as nervousness and slight fear rolled around in his stomach.

"Tsuna-sama that was wonderful! You handled that jerk teacher so well!"

"Sawada was EXTREMELY cool!"

"Haha Wow Tsuna that was awesome!"

Tsuna gasped and turned finding his three friends grinning at him brightly. He relaxed and smiled back albeit a little more on the nervous side. Gokudera sidled up to him and whispered something in his ear that make Tsuna want to go cry in a corner and scream at how unfair this entire situation.

"Just like a true Vongola boss, Tsuna-sama."

_I don't want to be the Vongola Boss!_ He wanted to scream that to the world, but he could only give Gokudera a pathetic look as the other boy grinned at him happily.

Later in the lunch room as his friends were chatting and he was dreading his next meeting with Reborn the bandaged red head came up to him quietly looking nervous.

"Thanks for earlier."

The other boys voice was low barley even a mumble, but it warmed Tsuna's heart and he smiled at him. All his conflicting feelings about the earlier confrontation left him as he looked at the nervous Simon member.

"It's no problem. I was in the same position for basically all of my life until I came here. I put up with it because I believed their cruel words, but to see it done to another person…" Tsuna trailed off blushing slightly.

His reaction may have been over the top now that he thought about it. Enma smiled in understanding and nodded.

"Thanks again. I-I'll see you later?"

Tsuna nodded at the hesitant questions and smiled brightly as the boy when back to his group. He turned back to his own friends and found them staring at him their expressions unreadable.

"So some jerks thought they could be mean to Tsuna-sama did they?" Gokudera voice sounded eerily calm.

"Hahaha That isn't nice at all." Was it just him or did Yamamoto's smiled seem sinister all of the sudden?

"We should teach them a lesson to the extreme." Onii-san had an odd gleam in his eye that made his soft spoken words seem more threatening than when he shouted things.

"W-Wait a minute!" Tsuna waved his hands in front of him nervously. "It's okay! I'm fine now, really! You don't have to hurt them!"

There was a long pause and Tsuna was worried that his new friends actually would find a way to his dimension to beat his former bullies up, but luckily the moment passed and the three went back to normal.

"Ahaha We'll just have to make sure that never happens again."

Gokudera and Onii-san nodded agreeing with the former baseball player.

"Yes, we'll protect him to the EXTREME!"

Tsuna smiled at them feeling happy that they cared about him even to the point of beating people up who didn't remember him anymore. They could be a bit scary and slightly crazy, but they were good friends.

Thursday, started with an explosion. Then several more after Tsuna failed Reborn's quiz on the Vongola traditions book. They barely made it to class after having to make a trip to the infirmary despite skipping breakfast to make it there. Gokudera apologized the entire way to the infirmary and the entire way to class while Yamamoto seemed to be very tense for some reason.

He wasn't sure how much more of this treatment he could take. It had been two days and he was exhausted and sore. Tsuna tried very hard to smile at Davis-sensei despite his rumbling stomach and aching muscles, but he was sure it came out as more of a grimace. His smile was truer, if not a bit sheepish, when he learned his 'fight' with Nezu-sensei had travel around. As it turned out word did in fact reach the Ninth and the man was fired immediately for his actions. Apparently with all of the paper work the Ninth had he had somehow missed the stack of complaints about the man along with a very detailed report on how he didn't in fact have the degrees he claimed to.

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><p>Yamamoto glanced over at Tsuna again as they worked silently on his lesson in language class. Gokudera was leaning back in a chair on the other side of the brunette staring up at the ceiling. Obviously bored, but not willing to leave his precious 'Tsuna-sama'. Gokudera caught his eyes and scowled at him telling him silently that Tsuna was fine, if not a little worn out from Reborn's antics.<p>

Yamamoto smiled sheepishly and went back to his work blinking back the images of Tsuna unconscious on the training room floor his back covered is nauseating burns. He couldn't seem to get it out of his mind despite his numerous attempts. This morning's events didn't help matters.

He knew it wasn't the same situation. Reborn seemed to know what he was doing and never put Tsuna in danger that wasn't controlled by him. Yamamoto didn't like the fact that over the past two days Tsuna had been covered in more and more bruises and scrapes, but it wasn't his right to interfere in the method Reborn trained his student. Though he couldn't help but resent Reborn's actions this morning. He felt that it was on purpose to rile him up. Know the baby's reputation he wouldn't doubt it.

Still, he glanced at Tsuna once more, he wondered why Reborn would try and rile him up. Maybe he wanted him to talk to Tsuna about it? Yamamoto shook his head and tried to focus on his work once again. He didn't want to talk about it.

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><p>Gokudera rolled his eyes at the Baseball Idiots antics. He didn't know what was troubling the other boy and he didn't particularly care, but if he upset Tsuna-sama then he'd rough him up a bit. He was glad when class ended and they got to go to KYE. Genkishi had offered to talk to someone about letting him study another language when he had first finished the class, but he had turned him down. He already knew two other languages beside Italian so he took the opportunity to take an extended smoke break. The teachers didn't like his habit so he could only snatch a few smokes here and there the first couple of days he was at the Vongola. When they found out he was using his extra time to smoke they tried to wrestle him into another class or activity to no avail. Now that he wanted to keep Tsuna-sama company and perhaps help him if he was struggling he was considering taking the lazy teacher up on his previous offer. Perhaps he'll study Japanese…<p>

He glanced at Tsuna-sama. He was writing down notes diligently despite the audible rumbling of his stomach making his blush three different shades of red. Gokudera held back a chuckle. It would be rude to laugh at Tsuna-sama. After all if Gokudera had though a head and sent the Baseball Idiot to get some food while he took Tsuna-sama to the infirmary then Tsuna-sama wouldn't be hungry right now.

He frowned his good mood deflated somewhat. He obviously need to work harder if he wanted to be a good right hand man to Tsuna-sama. He shook his head to clear his thoughts as class ended and they headed to lunch.

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><p>Tsuna grinned as he sat down to eat. He had been so embarrassed when his stomach started growling in class. He had a hard time concentrating and the muffled snickers around the room didn't help much at all. He wanted the floor to just open up and swallow him whole. Kyoko and Haru managed to keep the conversation up as Yamamoto and Tsuna wolfed down their food with obvious enthusiasm.<p>

When lunch was almost over and he realized that he would now have to endure Reborn's training again he groaned in despair. Gokudera was immediately all over him asking if he was okay, if he felt alright, if he had a stomach ache or was sick. Tsuna tried to wave him off, but it was difficult. He wondered if this was the way Gokudera would act from now on. He kind of wished he'd go back to the way he was before. The grumpy Gokudera was a little scary at first, but a better alternative to being worshiped. He was too afraid to say anything though. He didn't want to upset the other boy or make him act in ways he didn't want too. He also didn't want to lose him either.

Tsuna was distracted by his thoughts when Reborn showed up. Lambo immediately launched himself at the baby and it was a struggle to prevent him from tossing grenades. When they finally calmed the Lambo down Tsuna said his goodbyes and followed the baby out of the room.

As he glanced around at the new recruits still seated he noticed, for the first time, that they were giving him side glances. When they noticed him looking they'd turn away and talk to one another. Tsuna frown, but Reborn was quick to answer his unasked question.

"You just got here and suddenly you are my tutelage." The left the room and headed toward their usual training room in the main building. "Of course they are going to recent you. You've barely shown anything worthy of being a student of mine."

Tsuna hung his head. He should have seen that coming. He didn't know much about Reborn, but he seemed to be a popular person around the Vongola. His situation must look like complete and utter favoritism. He sighed. There was not much he could do about it. He just wished he could be a normal recruit and not have to worry about complicated stuff like that.

It became clear during Reborn's training and the Physical Training class that he was hopeless when it came to fighting or anything physical really. Reborn attempted to teach him how to punch today, after nearly working him to death with jumping jacks, sit-up, crunches, squats and another Leon chase all made more dangerous with bullets being shot at him along with other terrifying weapons to 'encourage' him to move faster. Punching practice wasn't any better especially when Tsuna nearly broke his thumb.

That was essentially how Friday and the weekend went with a few breaks to breath and enjoy some time with his friends. He could tell Reborn was annoyed with him, but he just couldn't keep up with it. Yamamoto, Gokudera and Sasagawa all did better than him when Reborn brought them in on Saturday to test them for some reason Tsuna didn't want to know lest it give him something more to worry about. He had a good idea though after getting to the guardian's section of his book.

All three of them were amazing. Reborn even admitted that they were above average which coming from him was high praise indeed. Tsuna watched in awe as Gokudera and Yamamoto duked it out. It was like a dance with Gokudera throwing dynamite in complicated patterns while Yamamoto sliced threw them with the sword Reborn had given him. He didn't think he could ever get to that level. He glance over at Reborn who was watching the fight with a calculating look in his eye.

He felt bad for the baby, after all he knew firsthand how strong he was and Tsuna hadn't gotten a taste of his true power at all! It must be difficult to train a useless person like him.

Tsuna tried he really did. Despite not wanting to be the Vongola Decimo he tried to get the answers right whenever Reborn quizzed him on the Vongola tradition book. He tried to complete all of the hellish training. He did this mainly because he didn't like disappointing people and he felt like by failing Reborn so much he was disappointing the baby. Needless to say despite his efforts he failed miserably in everything Reborn threw his way, but it wasn't as bad as he had first thought it'd be.

Sure Reborn's training was hell, but Tsuna had his friends to help him out when he was feeling down or was injured. Onii-san was surprising good at massages and for Tsuna's sore muscles that was heavenly. Kyoko would heal his smaller cuts and bruises while Gokudera had an extensive knowledge on how to treat burns.

By the time Monday rolled around Tsuna was a mess of conflicting feelings. He was proud he managed to survive this long, but upset and disappointed at his training with Reborn. He was happy he got to hang out with his friends, but worried Reborn and the Vongola Nono would force them into guardianship which sounded like a dangerous job.

Forcing his unruly thoughts to the back of his mind he tried to enjoy breakfast and ignored Mukuro's unnerving stare. He had felt it once or twice over the weekend, but was too afraid to even begin to wonder why the scary boy was staring at him so intently at times. He hoped it was simply because his friends were being loud again. He grinned weakly and waved at Fuuta who had forgotten something from his room.

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><p>Mukuro let a slight frown slip over his features as he gazed at the rambunctious group across the cafeteria. Had Hibari Kyoya been here he would have 'bitten them to death' for crowding too much. However, the former prefect was very adamant in his refusal to step a single foot in this room. He made it very clear to the blond leader of the Cavallone family that he did not like crowding with herbivores. Of course when he caught Mukuro listening in Hibari immediately tried to bite him to death for existing.<p>

The self-proclaimed carnivore was fairly amusing to rile up and spar with, even if Mukuro refrained from using all of his strength and abilities. He found many things amusing in the Vongola headquarters, but that group of new recruits was not one of them. They were loud and constantly had smiles on their faces. It wouldn't have been so bad if they all had been weak and didn't interfere with his plans.

The ranking child, Fuuta was essential to finding the Vongola heir. He had been trying to find the Decimo on his own for the past week with little luck. The most obvious candidates turned out to not to be the one and even when he broadened his search to the less likely he couldn't find the elusive male. However, with the child constantly being surrounded by that group outside of classes and on the weekend it made it difficult to steal him away without anyone noticing.

That boy was the most annoying out of all of them. After all there were some promising people in that group for him to possess. Unfortunately they, for lack of a better term, crowded around the weaker boy like he was a beacon of light. It was annoying. He disliked favoritism greatly and it was obvious the boy was receiving it. After all the great Sun Arcobaleno, Reborn, didn't simply train anyone especially someone as weak and pathetic as Sawada Tsunayoshi. It was clear that his father as the head of the CEDEF had pulled some strings for his son.

Though he did have to give the boy some credit the younger Sawada had an uncanny ability to notice him when he was in the area. His frightened eyes would land on his for the briefest moment before he turned back to his friends and was distracted from his presence. Due to that he had considered the boy a candidate briefly. However, as he watched the boy more he realized that with the little to no confidence, frightened nature, and absolutely no fighting ability there was no way he could be the Vongola heir. They hadn't fallen that far, yet.

He turned his eyes away from the group lest Sawada notice him staring. He glanced at his two followers that were silently eating their food. Though neither dared complain he could tell that they were sick of this awful place. The sooner they destroyed this hypocritical organization the better.

Mukuro smirked. Yes, now all they needed was the ranking child and their plan could begin…

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><p>Reborn held back as sigh as he entered the Ninth's office and found all of the guardians were included in the meeting today. Despite him knowing they wouldn't say anything, he still didn't like to announce his current failings with Tsuna training. It had barely been a week, but he held himself to high standards when it came to teaching and Tsuna still managed to fail at throwing a single punch was a slap to his ego.<p>

The worst part about the whole situation was the fact that he couldn't use the Dying Will Bullets because the boy didn't regret anything now that he had friends. Had he been like Dino or even like he was before in Namimori it would have been the perfect training method and would have saved a lot of time that he was now spending trying to building up the boy's body to a point where he could actually withstand the stress of maintaining his flame. He knew it took time and he needed to be more patient, but trouble was stirring and he was getting restless.

It was and irritating and slow process that tested Reborn's patience to the limit and set him on edge. After all should there be a problem, or Tsuna's encounters an assassin willing to kill him the boy would be in major trouble.

He paused at the last thought. That gave him an idea. Perhaps Bianchi would assist him in a little act to get Tsuna riled up or at least aware he might be attacked for his current status as heir. As of right now he seemed to be in a state of denial.

"Your report Reborn?" The Ninth looked more tired than ever and Reborn felt bad for the information he was about to tell the man. It would not help his mood in the least.

"Tsunayoshi Sawada is still woefully out of shape and is still struggling to do the simplest of tasks. Though his pain tolerance has risen, his speed, strength, and stamina has not. Which is understandable given that it's only been a week, however he hasn't as of yet caught onto the pattern I use when shooting at him. He flails around like a baby deer on ice. His academic level seems to be average at best thanks to the help of his friends, but I'll need to watch him in these coming weeks to get an accurate gage in his level."

The Ninth nodded obviously having expected this. "I see. I see. He is doing well outside of your training though, correct. He's having fun with his friends?"

"Yes, their relationship grows stronger by the day."

"Good. Good." He smiled briefly before turning to his storm guardian. "Coyote, tell him what you have discovered. I think this might spell trouble for Tsuna and the Vongola as a whole in the near future."

The man nodded and stepped forward. "I have been getting reports from my men out on the field about the continuation of experiments done by the Estraneo after our demand for them to stop. I believe you have already seen some of the photos and read the reports I turned in on that nearly sixth months ago." Reborn nodded not liking where this was going. "Well it seems that all of their underground hideouts have been completely ransacked and everyone has been killed brutally."

Reborn glanced at the photos laid out on the desk before him frowning. "Do you have any leads on who might have done this?"

"No, we had been planning a full invasion and shut down of the Estraneo for a while, but it seems whoever did this decided to jump the gun. There is no evidence of who it might be, but this carnage isn't the end of it."

More photos were laid down on the table.

"Four other organizations were also destroyed in a similar manner. Three of them were our allies."

"Do you think it might be the Millefiore?"

"Their method of killing is cleaner, but it is a possibly considering we don't have any other leads as of yet."

Coyote was very tense Reborn noticed. It was understandable after all it wasn't just the leaders and adults killed during these massacres. The children were also slaughtered in the same brutal manor. Coyote had grandchildren the same age as some of those children and was obviously agitated.

"No leads at all?"

It was Schnitten who spoke up this time. "We have no idea though we think that even if the person or people aren't technically part of the Millefiore they are more than likely associated with them. The Vindice managed to catch the murders, however they were attacked by the Millefiore and the culprits managed to escape."

"How did the Vindice handle that? They don't like it when anyone interferes with their arrests regardless of who it is."

Reborn, like everyone, wasn't all that fond of the self-proclaimed law. They weren't on anyone's side and simply imprisoned those who broke their rules.

"From what we could gather the leader of the Millefiore squirmed his way out of any punishment once again." Coyote scowled. "If I didn't know any better I'd say that the Vindice is fond of that boy."

The Ninth rubbed his forehead. "In any case we need to be extra vigilant, especially with the heir being weak at the moment. It's very clear that whoever is behind this are very real threats. Also we need to keep in mind the sudden disappearance of Fuuta di la Stella this morning. It may just be a coincidence after all there are many other organizations and individuals who want his power, however we should keep vigil."

Reborn nodded and bowed with the rest of the guardian. He had a bad feeling in his gut that it was already too late, but he pushed it down in favor of searching for his charge. He needed to train the boy extra hard now that this threat had surfaced. Tsuna may need to step it up very soon and it wouldn't do for him to be ill prepared. He'd look bad if the boy died while under his tutelage.

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><p><strong>Alrighty this chapter was meant to be up earlier, but as I looked over it I found some timeline issues and had to rearrange it a little to match up correctly. XD Anywho you get several different pov in this chapter along with the Nezu fight! People liked that fight in the original so I couldn't just edit it out besides that it sets up some stuff with the Simon family later down the road. I think it was a pretty good mix of new and old, but let me know what you guys think!<strong>

**Review Time~**

**crimsonarrows~ Thanks for the review! Yes those last few chapters were moving a bit faster and there weren't a lot of changes done, but hopefully this chapter makes up for that. Don't worry you didn't sound rude a all. **


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: Still don't own KHR**

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><p>Reborn decided on an obstacle course for training. Tsuna was torn between being impressed by its size and complexity and utterly terrified at the idea of going through it. He settled with the latter and had to stop a scream inching up his throat. He learn very quickly that Reborn didn't like his scream and punished him severely when he heard it.<p>

As he trudged his way over to the physical training room he wondered what made Reborn decide to increase the torture. He hoped it wasn't his abysmal physical capabilities, because if that was the case then his training was going to get a lot worse from this point forward. He could barely make it through a portion of the obstacle course and was currently covered in scraps, burns, bite marks and bruises. Whenever he tried to ask Reborn why, mostly in the form of whines, he simply replied that Tsuna need to move at a faster pace.

Tsuna just didn't understand why they needed to move faster or even continue to train him at all. He was obviously not a good choice for Vongola heir or even boss. Surely they could find another sky flame user. Didn't Reborn or the Vongola Ninth mention something about a fourth son? What was the issue with him? Why couldn't he take over? Surely he was a better option than Tsuna.

Sighing he shook his head and entered the physical training room. His friends were immediately at his side and he grinned weakly at them while leaning against Yamamoto. Class pasted by in a blur of aches and pains. The coaches seemed to have given up on him, though that might have more to do with the fact he came in looking like death warmed over everyday than any fault of his own. He was grateful though for it. He had enough of being yelled at and criticized on his running, dodging, standing, and general failure from Reborn. Thought the few mutters of special treatment he heard from the other recruits made him cringed.

Tuesday came and they found out that Fuuta had been missing since yesterday morning. The girls fretted over it while comforting Lambo and I-pin. They both looked devastated their friends was missing. Lambo climbed in his lap and refused to move until the children's caretakers pulled him away to attend class. Tsuna's stomach curled into knots at the thought of Fuuta being in any trouble.

They continued on to class knowing they couldn't do anything. Tsuna had a hard time concentrating, but was glad when they met the new science teacher. He was a younger man named Lee-sensei. He, like Davis-sensei, had a love for his subject Tsuna could never share. He appreciated it none the less.

Things went fine despite his worry and Reborn new training regime. Before he realized it Physical training was over. He became nervous when Reborn immediately called for Gokudera to follow him. Tsuna tried to question him, but Reborn seemed to have made up his mind and shuffled Gokudera away.

Tsuna had a bad feeling about the whole situation as he walked with Yamamoto and Onii-san outside with a water bottle each. Sasagawa was going for a run on the trails while Yamamoto and Tsuna planned on lounging under a large oak tree they could see from their room. Tsuna just wanted to shut his brain down. He was worried about Fuuta, Gokudera, being the Vongola Heir and Reborn with his crazy teaching methods. He needed to calm down.

They sat there a while Tsuna tried to calm himself down when a trickle of fear slide down his spine. He opened his mouth not know exactly what he was going to say when Yamamoto suddenly tackled him to the ground. Looking over his friends shoulder he nearly faintly at the sight of a plate sliding down the tree trunk he was just leaning against. The trunk was simmering threateningly from whatever substance was on the plate in questions.

Yamamoto yanked him to his feet and around the trunk before Tsuna could scream.

"Come on out little Vongola Heir." A female voice called out from the other side of the tree. He flinched at the memory it invoked.

"What do you want?" Yamamoto shouted right back. "Why are you attacking us?"

Her laughter was the only answer they got as the woman rounded the trunk and sent Yamamoto flying with a kick to the diaphragm. She smirked at him while pulling out a decorative knife covered in some sort of purple substance. The fact that it was steaming slightly made Tsuna very nervous. He tried to pull away from her, but she was fast. She kicked his legs out from under him leaving him sprawled on the ground useless.

She raise her knife ready to strike and Tsuna wondered briefly why he wasn't completely freak-out. His vision was blocked by Yamamoto's back and his panic suddenly tripled before dissipating at the familiar tiny foot to the head.

"Reborn?!"

Reborn looked severely disappointed. Tsuna cringed.

"Dame-Tsuna if Bianchi was really an assassin trying to kill you Yamamoto would be dead right now. What do you have to say for yourself?"

Tsuna finally noticed that the woman, who was now standing a few feet away, was the one he had asked the other day for directions. He sat up slowing glancing at Yamamoto's pale face then back at Reborn's cold one.

"This was a test?"

"One you failed utterly at." Reborn gestured to the woman now at his side. "I asked Bianchi to test your reaction to attacks. I didn't expect much, but this was simply abysmal. Not only did you not defend yourself at all, but you didn't defend your subordinate."

Tsuna winced mulling over Reborn words. Yamamoto had leaped in front of him to protect him from what he thought was a fatal attack. If it had been than that knife and whatever it was coated in, most likely poison, would have gone straight through his chest and killed him. He cringed again this time in self-disgust. Yamamoto would have died for him, while Tsuna just sat there looking dumb.

Reborn left after explaining that the attack was set up and Gokudera came running over only to collapse at the sight of the woman, who was apparently his sister. The silverette apologized profusely at his absence. Reborn had tricked him and locked him in a room so that he wouldn't give the ruse away.

Tsuna tried to smile as he reassured the other boy, but he knew it didn't look right. Both Yamamoto and Gokudera were sending him worried looks as they walked back to their room to calm down before dinner. He knew he should say something. He should tell them that he was fine and not to worry, but he couldn't find the words.

He wasn't fine.

They had been attack and Tsuna hadn't done a thing even when one of his first friends took what could've have been the killing blow for him. He didn't even try to do anything. Tsuna couldn't have felt more disgusted at himself.

Tsuna was silent through-out dinner. Everyone was. It was a strange contrast to their normal routine and Tsuna could hear the whispers their odd behavior was creating. He ignored it and continued to pick at his food with one had while rubbing Lambo's back with the other.

As he laid on his bed staring out at the night sky he resolved to work harder. He was weak and helpless the way he was now. He didn't want to fight, but he defiantly wanted to protect his friends.

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><p>Tsuna panted and huffed as he leaned against the cold wall trying not to fall over. Running like everything physical was not his strong suite, but he was forcing himself to continue forward. Normally he would have collapsed complaining vocally. Today was different. After yesterday's attack he decided to put more effort into training with Reborn. He pushed himself harder than ever before. Despite that he still found himself panting on the ground. His vision blurred for a moment, but he pushed himself to his feet anyway.<p>

When he woke up Thursday he was a mess of sore limbs and worries. He managed to make it through his classes, though just barely. By the time he was left to Reborn's tender mercies again he was exhausted, but he immediately threw himself into the work. When he once again found himself on the ground frustrated and struggling to get up Reborn kicked him in the head.

He face planted. Groaning he glared up at his tutor. Reborn just raise his eyebrows.

"Don't push yourself Dame-Tsuna. You won't get stronger by hurting yourself like this."

"But!"

Reborn kicked him in the head again. "Stop think Dame-Tsuna. It's not your strong suite."

Tsuna stared up at him for a minute before sitting up and looking at his trembling hands. Once he got his breathing under control and his hand stop shaking he stood up and looked at Reborn.

When Reborn started training again he focused more on what he was doing rather than trying to push himself and finally started dodging those awful bullets. He still tripped and messed up a lot, but he just took a deep breath and started again.

He grinned when he finally saw the pattern Reborn used for the bullets.

Reborn proceeded to pull out a grenade launcher and scare him witless, but Tsuna was proud of himself. Of course he was even sorer than he was before and he got twice as much bruises, scraps and burns, but Tsuna could finally see himself make progress and learning at least a little bit.

After class Tsuna and his friends went to play with Lambo and I-pin who were still very upset over the missing Fuuta. The children were no longer allowed outside without a caretaker, but Tsuna didn't mind and they hung out in the toy room.

With their combined efforts, though most of the help came from Yamamoto, they managed to get the kids smiling and laughing again.

Friday passed in the same manner. Saturday rolled around and Tsuna was starting to get the hang of punching. After classes were over Reborn dragged him back to the training room and started testing different weapons he could use. Despite trying hard Tsuna still managed to fail at all of them.

Poor Yamamoto was slapped across the face when Tsuna's butterfingers acted up while using a sword. Tsuna was just glad it was wooden and not real like the sword Yamamoto had. That would have been a disaster.

Gokudera didn't fare much better when trying to teach him about explosives. In fact Tsuna sent everyone running with his wild throws. Gokudera said that was the point and he did very well, but Tsuna saw his eye twitching.

The bo staff ended in the same manner as the sword. Before he could even finish the first move he had already smacked Gokudera in the back of the head. The whip had to be the worst, however, because Tsuna managed to smack himself no less than three times and tripped everyone up till they were one large pile of flailing limbs and leather whip. Reborn wouldn't even let him hold a gun much less learn to shoot one, so that was out before Tsuna could mess up with it. Which was probably a good thing.

In the end they settled with Onii-san teaching him some blocks and strikes. It seem to be safer for everyone that way and Tsuna was able to get by even when Onii-san got to excited and knocked him to the ground.

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><p>Mukuro smirked at the tearful boy in front of him. It was too bad that the kid had such a strong will and refused to rank anything, but he had a list of the 20 strongest recruits so it wasn't a complete loss. Now all they had to do was draw the little Decimo out.<p>

The sound of Ken and Chikusa entering the room made him smirk. It took quicker than expected to beat the three at the bottom of the list. His smirk widened.

"Kufufufu Let the games begin dear Decimo. I will find you yet."

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><p>Timoteo stood in front of his window with his hands behind his back thinking about the current situation in great depth. Just this morning they had found no less than ten new recruits beaten to near death. None of them had woken from their comas and the healers feared that mental trauma was inflicted on them. He didn't have half the Hyper Intuition of the Vongola Primo or even Tsuna had, but he could still see the connection between these beatings and the recent massacres of other organizations. The wounds on the victims matched the ones on the recruits perfectly.<p>

It appeared as though they're new enemy was right under their noses and they couldn't do a thing about it. His guardians were worried about him thinking that these attacks were a cover up to assassinate him, but Timoteo saw it differently. It wasn't a distraction. It was a challenge. But it wasn't for him. No. The challenge was for Tsuna.

He had known of the existence of spies in the Vongola for some time. It was impossible to run and organization this big and not have them. It was clear that word got out that he had picked an heir and now this group had taken it upon themselves to try and draw Tsuna out. He feared for the kind hearted boy. It was clear that the people behind these attacks had a major grudge against the Vongola and Timoteo could think of several reasons why.

He had wanted to keep Tsuna in the dark about many of actions the Vongola had taken since it began in order to keep the Millefiore in check. The sins of the Vongola was a heavy burden to place on a young fourteen years old should and he didn't want to break the child. However, if the perpetrators were to find out who Tsuna was he had no doubt they'd reveal their motives.

Timoteo sighed and glanced at the clock. His mist guardian, Bouche, had said that he might have a lead on the true identities of the culprits Timoteo was waiting on his report.

He gazed unseeingly out the clear glass. He knew what he should do as a boss of the Vongola. He should order Tsuna to take care of the problem. That way the boy would have a chance to see real combat and hopefully grow from it. Reborn had already reported the boy's reaction to the fake assassination. He should be more serious about fighting now. Should things go right the boy will gain power. If it went wrong…then Reborn would be there.

It was a ritual that all of the Vongola bosses did with their heirs. He himself had done it for each of his sons with the exception of Xanxus. Usually the heir gained power or they died. It was cruel. But it was also effective. He had accepted this unsavory task in the past with his boys. However, he couldn't afford that with Tsuna. He was the last chance they had and he wasn't willing to risk losing the boy. Reborn would have to step in before Tsuna died.

He glanced at the clock again. He knew he had to make a decision. He knew what was right. He knew what was wrong. He knew what would help the Vongola. He knew what would hurt it. And he knew that the decision he was leaning towards could possibly destroy a young boy's view of the Vongola and human beings as a whole.

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><p>Sunday started out a little better, but got progressively worse. As soon as Reborn let him go he limped out headed toward the school. When he entered the building he paused for a moment. Something seemed off. The students hurried to and fro trying to make it to their classes on time, but unlike normal they held an air of fear about them. The girls huddled in groups of at least three and the boys kept glancing around as if expecting an attack.<p>

Tsuna frowned. That was odd.

He tried to ignore it as he walked to his class, but the tension was suffocating. He looked at the floor as a group of girls passed whispering to each other. What he caught from their quiet conversation made his blood go cold.

"Are they okay?"

"All the victims are in comas."

"They attacks are getting more frequent."

"Who's behind it?"

"No one knows."

"Why would someone attack the new recruits?"

Tsuna looked at their backs as they turned the corner feeling uneasy. First Fuuta went missing sometime yesterday and now new recruits were being beaten to the point that they were all in comas. He didn't like this at all. Something didn't seem right about the whole situation. He thought about his friends. What if they were next? What if they had already been attacked? The imaged of Yamamoto jumping in front of him to save his live flashed in front of his mind and he cringed.

The last thought made him rush to physical training as fast as his tired body could take him. He wouldn't know what to do if his friends were hurt like that. His gut twisted painfully at the thought of seeing one of them in a hospital bed.

He managed to make it to classes in time and quickly searched the room for their usually spot. He let out a sigh of relief when he saw Yamamoto and Gokudera, but his chest clinched at the absence of Onii-san.

"Yamamoto, Gokudera what happened to Onii-san?"

The immediately noticed the fear in his eyes and smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry Tsuna he hasn't been attacked." Yamamoto put a hand on his should and led him to his seat gently.

"The turf-top apparently managed to activate his flame today. The idiot accidently blew up an entire wall because of his excitement. Dino was talking to him when he left."

Tsuna smiled grateful Onii-san hadn't been attacked. "Oh good I was worried. I just found out in the hallways and I just…"

He shook his head trailing off. Yamamoto smiled at him.

"Yeah that must have been quite a shock. We learned about it at the being of Weapons from Dino."

Tsuna smiled sheepishly. "I panicked and ran here, but it looks like I was being silly."

"Tsuna-sama is so kind hearted worrying like that over us." Gokudera grinned at him and Tsuna laughed a little feeling embarrassed.

"Well in any case I'm glad Onii-san managed to activate his flames even if he destroyed a wall."

"Haha Yeah I feel a little jealous now." Yamamoto waved his ring in the air. "I activated my flame briefly, but haven't been able to do it again."

"Tsk, That's just cause your weak."

"Gokudera!"

"Hahahaha Maybe you're right."

"Yamamoto! Don't laugh that off!"

"Sorry Tsuna-sama!"

"Haha Sorry."

"Besides that you're defiantly not alone. I haven't been able to either."

Class started, but he couldn't concentrate. He kept glancing at the door waiting, hoping that Onii-san would appear. He never did though and Tsuna started to get worried. He understood talking to Onii-san about his new powers, but would it really take this long. Of course Onii-san was a little dense…but still! It wouldn't take this long even if Onii-san didn't understand the teacher would have given up by now at the very least!

Tsuna glanced at the clock. Only a few minutes had passed since he last looked at it and he sighed.

Class ended and Onii-san had yet to show up and Tsuna couldn't stop fidgeting with worry. Yamamoto and Gokudera kept trying to calm him down, but nothing helped. He had a really bad feeling. Something was very wrong. He knew. He just knew that Onii-san was in trouble. He couldn't place a figure on how he knew, but something in the back of his head told him Onii-san hurt.

Gokudera and Yamamoto had to lead him down the halls catching him when he tripped and preventing him from running into walls every several yards. He only snapped out of his haze when a threatening presence approached them.

"Herbivores."

Tsuna flinched as Hibari Kyoya addressed them directly. He hadn't actually talked to the boy yet, but his reputation was legendary. Violent and moody the other teen only listened to Dino and even then not without a fight.

"You crowd with the loud herbivore, correct?"

"Hahaha you mean Sasagawa?"

Hibari turned his eyes toward Yamamoto and nodded. "I was asked to inform you that he has been attacked and is currently unconscious in the infirmary."

With that said he turned on his heel and walked off. Tsuna stared after him wondering why he was worried about the scary boy. He didn't know why, but he had a feeling that Hibari was going to do something dangerous. His train of thought was cut off, however, when he finally realized exactly what Hibari said.

"Hiiieeee! Onii-san's been attacked!?"

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><p><strong>Okidoki. So, I'll be uploading the next five chapter in within the next half hour. That'll get us up to right before the Lancia fight. The last two chapters will be posted later most likely evening-ish time 'cause I still have some editing to do. Hopefully no later than 10. Though there's no knowing what time that'll be for some of you guys. :**

**Reviews~**

**_crimsonarrows_~ Thanks for the review! Yeah, I couldn't just cut it. I liked it too much. :D**

**_Animeseris_~ So, close yet so far. XD Thanks for the review.**

**_(Ch. 3) Kyogre_~ You know this is why I love getting reviews from you. You always manage to point out things I hadn't considered or didn't express properly. I will definitely look into that and find a way to work in a better reason. I can think of a few off the top of my head, but I'll have to figure out where to work them into the story. I probably should just PM you since I'm replying to you on chapter twelve when you review chapter three...but I guess if guess if someone else had the same question they have answer now. Thanks for the review! **


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: Still don't own KHR**

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><p>The three of them rushed to the main building and down the hall to the infirmary only to find it crowded with other new recruits and healers rushing around to the different rooms trying to treat the surplus of patents to the best of their abilities. They were directed to Onii-sans room and darted through the crowd towards it.<p>

Tsuna was surprised to find both Dino and Reborn in the room as well when they entered. He decided to dwell on it later in favor of immediately going to Onii-san's side and assessing his injuries.

Tsuna wanted to cry at the image he was presented with. Onii-san was pale and unmoving. He had multiple bandages on his head and face along with a cast on his right arm. Tsuna stood there staring at him feeling guilty and powerless until Yamamoto and Gokudera put their hands on his shoulders. That was enough to snap his out of it and he looked at them.

Yamamoto was frowning, worry etched into his face while Gokudera's face was blank, but his eyes spoke volumes. It was clear that they were both as upset as he was about this turn of events. Onii-san was a friend. He had an air about him like he was always glowing. Maybe it was his Sun flames, but Tsuna though it was because of his happy and energetic personality. He lit up the area with his smile and to see him like this was very painful.

"I'm sorry this had to happen." Dino started softly. "Kyoya and I found him in an empty hallway and I sent him to tell you what happened when Reborn told me you guys were good friends."

Tsuna nodded at the made his smiled strained, but grateful. "Thank you."

Dino grinned weakly. "No problem."

Tsuna's eye's darkened as he turned back to Onii-san. "Why is this happening?"

"It's a challenge." Tsuna jumped slightly at Reborn voice. "A challenge for the Vongola Decimo. A challenge for you."

Tsuna froze. Yamamoto and Gokudera tensed were they stood on either side of him.

"What?" Yamamoto's voice was cold and his very demeanor seemed to bring the temperature down a few degrees.

"Teeth have been yanked out of each victim in order. The first victim lost all twenty four of his teeth, the second twenty three, this trend continues onward through all of them. Sasagawa lost seven teeth." Dino was extremely serious while he explained this anger shone brightly in his eyes.

"It's been confirmed that the order in question is in fact the order that Fuuta ranked the new recruits based on strength." Reborn took over and showed them the list.

Tsuna paled. "That means the next one on the list is Gokudera."

He looked at his friend fearfully. Gokudera didn't seem to notice the look and scowled at the list.

"Who the hell is doing this?!"

Dino sighed. "We're still waiting on the Ninth to confirm the identities of the culprits. We heard that the mist guardian had found out, but they are still in a private meeting right now."

"Tsk."

"Due to fact that they are only hurting the new recruits and the fact that none of them are dead we believe that whoever is doing this is trying to call you out, Dame-Tsuna. Trying to find you by making you mad enough to confront him."

Tsuna glanced at Reborn frowning. "They're hurting people badly just to get to me."

"You are the Vongola heir." The tall blond smiled sadly at him. "It was the same thing for me when I was named the Cavallone heir."

Tsuna looked over at the man realizing something. "What? How do you know about me?"

"I told him." Reborn answered. "He was my former student."

He nodded and smiled at Dino a little shyly. "I'm sorry you had to get involved in this."

"It's fine. I want to get to the bottom of this as well after all a lot of the injured are my students." Dino shook his head obviously worried.

"All we can do right now is wait."

Tsuna didn't like Reborn's words, but he knew they were true. Without much information and with the threat of Gokudera being the next victim all they could do was wait.

* * *

><p>Timoteo once again found himself standing in front of his window deep in thought. Bouche's spies went above and beyond in their duties and managed to get information as well as pictures of the culprits. His mist guardian had just left, leaving him alone to decide on his course of action. He turned back to the photos on his desk. Three familiar faces stared up at him. Two of which were merely children. The other being the least likely suspect for such a bloody affair.<p>

Timoteo had met Lancia only once, but from what he could tell the man was very kind hearted and loved his organization. The very same organization that was found massacred supposable by his hand. The information the spies attained showed him as the leader of this rag tag group. Yet Timoteo couldn't quite believe that. His mind kept flashing back to the young blue haired boy he passed in the hallway the day he went to meet Tsuna for the first time. That boy had stood between two of the culprits who were half a step behind him the way the guardians often walked with their boss.

He glanced at the photos of their hide out. A broken down amusement park just passed the city on the edge of the Vongola base borders. A good spot that could be defended easily if necessary close enough to get too quickly, but far enough away any unusual activity wouldn't be noted. It was obvious that they knew what they were doing. They were strong too.

He could send a large squad to take them out, but he feared that wouldn't work. They wanted the Vongola heir. They wanted Tsuna. Though the reason was still unknown, he was sure whatever they did to the both would hurt the Vongola in ways they could recover from.

He started to pace. Timoteo knew what he needed to do as boss, but that wasn't what he wanted to do. He was worried about the boy. He had already decided on ordering Reborn to prevent his students' death, but Timoteo honestly didn't want the boy to see battle just yet. He was fourteen. He shouldn't have been burdened with the responsibility of being the Vongola heir until he was older. All of his sons were over eighteen when they inherited that title. But for the sake of the Vongola he had to start his training early.

And for the sake of the Vongola he was going to send him off to battle. He could prevent his death by keep Reborn by his side, but that was only physical damage. What about emotional damage?

The information Bouche gathered showed that the two boys had suffered under the Estraneo's dubious care. How would Tsuna react to the fact that people who were supposed to be fight for the good of the universe did such terrible things to children?

He sighed and sat down. Sweeping the photo's out of the way he grabbed a piece of paper and pen. He stared down on it for a few minutes before he began to write.

He had to believe in Tsuna. The boy may be physically weak, but he had a strong heart and even stronger flames. Timoteo was sure that under the right circumstances the boy could unleash his true power and activate his flames.

He had to believe.

Tsuna was the Vongola's last hope. If he didn't believe in the boy now than the Vongola might as well be doomed…

* * *

><p>They found themselves in their room a half an hour later under strict instruction not to leave. Tsuna stared at the table in front of him wondering when Reborn was going to come back and worrying over Onii-san. Kyoko had arrived not long after they had finished their conversation in tears. They spent some time comforting her before Reborn was called to the Ninth's office. Dino escorted them to their room and posted some of his guards outside of the door for safety measures. Gokudera was next on the list and Yamamoto was after him. Not to mention the fact that Tsuna was the Vongola heir.<p>

He sighed and glanced at his two companions. Gokudera was sitting on the floor in front of his bed checking his inventory. The amount of dynamites on the floor around the silver haired boy made Tsuna's skin crawl. He watched him for a minute noticing how Gokudera's fingers would touch his storm ring occasionally. Despite his relaxed position Tsuna could tell he was worried. He had his storm ring, but he was still learning how to use his flames efficiently. Often or not he would come back from Weapons class with burns and bruises from trying to control his unruly flames. Tsuna's hands tightened into fists as he tried to control their trembling.

He turned his eyes to Yamamoto who was across the table from him. Both of the other boy's hands were on the table in front of him. He was staring intently at the rain ring on his finger with a serious glint in his eye. Tsuna knew that other boy was upset with himself over not being able to summon his flame once since the first time. Yamamoto thought himself to be useless. That much was obvious by the look on his face. Tsuna wanted to tell him it wasn't his fault that he wasn't useless at all, but he lost his nerve when Yamamoto's stare turned into an intense glare.

He looked down at the table again. What good could his words be anyway? They didn't mean anything and certainly could change anything. Tsuna shut his eyes. Yamamoto could at least fight. Tsuna had seen him in Physical training and whenever Reborn brought him in to train with him. That fact was cemented even more when he defended him from the fake assassin. Even without using flames Yamamoto was amazing. Tsuna couldn't do any of that. An image of Onii-san lying on that white hospital bed bandaged and unconscious entered his mind. He gritted his teeth.

He was useless.

* * *

><p>Gokudera tried to prevent his hands from shaking by keeping them busy. He never expected something like this could happen. To think someone managed to get passed the Vongola's defensives and was attacking new recruits without leaving a clue to their identity. Not to mention the fact that they managed to beat the Turf-top. Gokudera argued with him constantly and despite the other boys' tendency to be extremely dense Gokudera knew he was strong. The idiot had a painful right hook and was fast to boot. Knowing that the Turf-top was beaten to the point of being in a coma made Gokudera uncomfortable thinking about the fact that he was next on the list.<p>

No that was a lie. He wasn't uncomfortable. He was scared.

His hand drifted to his storm ring as he scowled in annoyance at his own admittance of being frightened. He wanted to scoff and proclaim how completely confident he was in beating the jerks who were behind this, but he wasn't an idiot. He knew at the level that he was at now he'd most likely end up in a hospital bed as well. His other hand tightened its grip on the dynamite he was holding. He couldn't do anything with such ridiculous weapons as dynamites. It was his childish attempt to look cool. What good would it do him against powerful foes like the ones they were faced with now? Tsuna-sama would….

Tsuna-sama would what?

Gokudera froze. What was he thinking? He knew where he was going with that thought. He figured that Tsuna-sama would be disappointed in him for losing. But thinking more about it he realized that wasn't the case at all. Tsuna-sama wasn't that type of person. He was a kind and gentle soul. He was the one who ask Gokudera to simply be his friend when he offered his complete obedience to the boy. Tsuna-sama wouldn't be disappointed with him for losing

Tsuna-sama would be sad if he ended up like the Turf-top.

He glared down at his chosen weapons feeling disgusted by the turn his thoughts had taken. He couldn't let his fear get the better of him. He couldn't start doubting himself. Tsuna-sama didn't want to see those he considered friends hurt. Gokudera knew that and yet there he was thinking Tsuna-sama would be disappointed in his lack of strength. Even the weakest had a chance if they were smart about how they fought. Dynamite was an unconventional weapon that was for sure, but combined with Gokudera's strategies…

Gokudera nodded to himself and started to put his dynamites back in their proper places. He just had to be smart. He couldn't let his temper get the better of his this time. He didn't want to make Tsuna-sama worry on his account. Even without being able to control his flames he still had his dynamite and more importantly he had his mind.

Besides Tsuna-sama was going to be the Boss of the Vongola someday. What kind of right hand man would he be if he didn't have the determination to at least try to win a fight? He may not be strong enough or smart enough to defeat those guys, but when those bastards came for him then he'd give them a hell of a fight.

Yamamoto gritted his teeth as he stared down at his rain ring. He hadn't really cared about his slow progress. But it was different now. People were being attacked. Sasagawa was attacked and Gokudera was the next on the list.

What could he do if they were attacked? He didn't know how to box like Sasagawa. His punches wouldn't be nearly as effective as the other boys, nor did he have bombs like Gokudera. The only thing he had as a weapon was that bat Reborn gave him, but despite it feeling comfortable in his hand he still hadn't had any training in swordsmanship. What if one of the attackers was a swordsman? He'd look like a complete idiot waving that around.

He glared at his ring trying to force his flames to appear.

His hands tightened into fists in his irritation. As his nails bit into his palms he realized that he couldn't activate his flames with the irritation he felt at being useless. His father had told him tales of his adventure when he was in the Vongola and so Yamamoto had come here with more information that the average new recruit.

He knew that it took time. He father told him that when ones heart was in a start of confusion there was no way to activate a flame. He needed resolve, will.

The problem was he didn't know how to gather his resolve.

He wasn't even sure he knew what resolve really was. He knew if he asked Gokudera the silver haired boy would go into a long rant about it, but he couldn't understand things in that manner. He needed to do or feel it himself. He continued to stare at the ring memorizing its shape and color.

Yamamoto kept trying to figure it out, but his thoughts were a mess. He couldn't gather then in an organized manner and he knew that was his entire emotions fault. He was upset with Sasagawa's injuries and the people behind it. He was angry at the Vongola for letting the people behind the attacks slip by their defenses. But most of all his was disappointed and angry at himself for not being able to do anything about it.

He frowned.

He needed to calm down and gather his thoughts.

Yamamoto took a deep breath and let it out slowly. His eye's never left his hand as he tried to think of a way to understand resolve and how he needed to gather enough to ignite his flames. He'd be useless to everyone if he couldn't do that much. He needed it in order to beat the guys coming after them.

* * *

><p>Reborn carefully tucked the folder containing the pictures and information gathered on the attacker along with the letter with the Vongola Ninths orders out of sight in his jacket. He bowed to the Ninth and advised him to get some rest. The man looked beyond stressed and extremely guilty over the letter he just gave Reborn. The older man smiled warily and nodded, though they both knew he wouldn't listen to his advice. Reborn let it go, knowing there was nothing he could say that would help the man. He turned too walked out of the room when the older man called him back.<p>

"I nearly forgot. Can you give these to Tsuna for me?"

Reborn stared at the gloves for a moment before smirking at his boss.

"Are you trying to accomplish something by giving him these of all things?"

The Ninth just smiled. "I don't know what you are talking about. I simply had these made for Tsuna since you said he didn't seemed to be inclined toward any weapon."

"I just gave you a report about that yesterday. There is no possible way you could have had these made in less than a day."

The Ninth didn't have a retort for that and Reborn shook his head in reluctant amusement. He bowed and left to go give his student his first mission.

He continued through the hallways and down a few flights of stairs. His footsteps were silent and his presence went unnoticed by the many members heading to their own destination. There was more activity than usual due to the attacks and the tension was practically tangible. Exiting the main building he headed over to the new recruit barracks. Ignoring the whispery voices of the worried recruits he continued to head toward Tsuna's room.

He didn't like to admit it, but he was tense with slight worry over the life of his current student. He knew a mission like this would occur. If the Ninth didn't order one then he would himself. Fighting in a real battle was a good way to gain strength and experience. Dino himself was proof of that. The blond had grown so much after his fight with that large group of Millefiore. As long as he had his subordinates around the man was a fierce and powerful opponent. He knew it was coming for Tsuna. Reborn was no stranger to the tradition for the Vongola heirs to partake in a fight very similar to that.

He just didn't come this soon. Nor did he imagine it being as difficult as this situation would no doubt turn out to be. Tsuna was weak right now and not just physically weak. He was also mentally weak. The boy was woefully naïve and to trusting and kind for his own good. These traits weren't entirely bad; in fact, they're what drew people to him. However, those same traits led him to look at the world in very black and white terms.

Reborn frowned. This particular case didn't have those definite lines and Tsuna would most likely be very upset when he found out what the Estraneo organization did to the boys from. This could interfere with what little fighting capability the boy had right now and end up getting him severely hurt.

The guards in front of Tsuna's room bowed to him and he gestures for them to leave. He paused in front of the door, hesitating for just a moment. Leon licked his cheek and Reborn petted his partner while letting out a silent sigh. There was no point in stressing over the situation. If Tsuna got to hurt and looked like he wouldn't make it then he'd step in per the Ninths orders.

Reborn just hoped his student wouldn't disappoint him. After all if Tsuna failed his reputation would be ruined. Colonnello would never let him hear the end of it if that happened.

* * *

><p>Tsuna groaned as a tiny foot smashed his face into the table. Reborn had apparently decided that was the best way to greet him. Tsuna disagreed, but his complaints went unnoticed or more correctly were ignored by the baby. Tsuna rubbed his head his eyes automatically flashing to his friends. Yamamoto had an eerily blank look on his face that Tsuna had a bad feeling about. While Gokudera had sat himself beside Tsuna his face set in a scowl. When he saw Tsuna looking he gave him a small smile his eyes flashing with determination. Tsuna returned the smile gratefully before turning to Reborn who was standing in the middle of the table.<p>

"What d-did the Ninth s-say?" His stuttered made a return and Tsuna winced.

Luckily Reborn had decided to ignore it for now. Instead the baby pulled out an envelope from his coat and handed it to him. Tsuna took it hesitantly. His stomach was rolling from nerves and he a foreboding feeling washed over him as he opened the envelope and unfolded the letter. Swallowing thickly he read through it slowly.

Tsuna was shaking by the end of it. His hands clinched and unclenched wrinkling the fancy paper.

"Th-The Ninth really w-wants me t-to d-defeat the g-guys behind this?"

"What? That's crazy!" Gokudera reacted immediately. The paper was snatched out of his hand before Tsuna even realized it. The color drained from his face as he read. "T-That's crazy."

"Reborn! You know I can't fight! Didn't you tell the Ninth this!?" Tsuna bit his lip and looked down feeling ashamed for shouting.

Reborn didn't shoot at him like he thought he would. Instead he shook his head. "I have let the Ninth know every detail of you training. He knew full well what your capabilities are when he wrote this."

"Is he trying to get him kill then?!" Gokudera received a cold glare from the baby and immediately shrunk a little, but continued to scowl obvious waiting for a response.

"It is expected of every Vongola heir to complete a task such as this for the boss to gain strength and prove they are worthy of their title."

Tsuna looked at Yamamoto for support only to find a frown in the place of their eerie blank look from before. The frown wasn't much better. Tsuna felt disheartened.

"I c-can't d-do this…" His hands clutched the edge of the table as he looked at the floor.

"Those guys are trying to find you Tsuna." He glanced up at the baby in despair. He had forgotten about that fact. Reborn pushed forward. "Don't forget about Ryohei. He got hurt because of them along with a bunch of other innocent recruits. Not to mention the fact that it seems like Hibari Kyoya decided to take them on himself. He left the grounds to go find their hideout and hasn't been seen since."

"What?!" Tsuna thought back to when the other boy had told them about Onii-san. Tsuna had a bad feeling back then.

He frowned. He should have acted on it.

_But what could I have done?_

"But…"

"I'll go with you Tsuna-sama."

Tsuna turned to Gokudera in surprise.

"Let me come to, Tsuna."

"What?! Who would want you to come, Baseball-Idiot?"

"Hahaha Come on Gokudera."

"No. Tsuna-sama and I can handle it ourselves!"

He looked between the two in awe. Gokudera was fire up and Yamamoto seemed to have snapped out of the mood he was in before.

"You won't be alone Dame-Tsuna. Your friends will be with you every step of the way."

The two stopped bickering at Reborn's words and grinned at him. Tsuna felt a little hope spark inside him at their happy faces and gave a small, shaking smile in return.

Reborn's smirk went unnoticed by everyone. "Now that's settled then lets' move on."

Tsuna watched as he took the folder from under his arm and displayed its contents on the table in front of them. He stared at the three pictures as a cold shiver of dread made his way down his spine.

"T-Those two are…"

"Yes. Ken Joshima and Chikusa Kakimoto are two of the culprits behind these attacks."

Tsuna looked at Reborn in horror. "But…why? How?"

"We don't know all of the details, however somehow they managed to slip into the Vongola as new recruits. The man who brought them and along with Rokudo Mukuro is currently being interrogated by the cloud guardian."

Gokudera frowned. "What about that pineapple bastard? Isn't he involved? The three of them are always hanging out."

"There is no evidence to prove his involvement aside from the fact that he is currently missing."

"The letter says that we have to rescue the hostage. Did the Ninth mean…?" He trailed off uncertainly and Reborn responded immediately.

"No he didn't mean Mukuro, though if he is also being held captive you should rescue him as well."

Yamamoto was the one who voiced Tsuna's next question. "Then who's the hostage?"

"Fuuta de la Stella."

Tsuna closed his eyes in dismay. He really shouldn't have been very surprised Tsuna realized belatedly. Fuuta had been missing. He frowned. He wasn't just perturbed he was angry. How dare they use a child like this? His hands clinched and he felt his ring heat up slightly. It made him angry that they would kidnap and possibly hurt someone so young and defenseless.

Reborn looked at him for a moment before continuing. He pointed to the third picture on the table. "This is the ring leader, Lancia. He's the one we'll have to really watch out for."

Tsuna nodded as he gazed solemnly at the pictures. His voice was quiet when he spoke again. "Are they a part of the Millefiore?"

Reborn gave him an unreadable look. "Not that we know of. They seem to be a separate group."

"So why?"

Reborn frowned. "I'm sure they have their reasons. Most likely involving wanting power or something similar."

Tsuna nodded, not quiet excepting Reborn's vague answer, but deciding not to push it. "All right."

He sighed and closed his eyes in defeat. "When are we going? Where are we going?"

"They are currently hiding in the abandoned theme park, Kokuyo Land. We will leave immediately. Unless you want to wait around and let them cause any more damage?"

Tsuna winced, but nodded anyway. Reborn turned to Yamamoto and gave him the sword he had been practicing with before. Tsuna vaguely wondered where the baby kept all of the random things he managed to pull out of nowhere when the time call for it, but let it go in favor of saner topics.

As he started to stand Reborn threw something at him. Nailing him in the head and knocking him to the floor.

"Reborn!" He gave the baby a wounded look and glanced down at the objects. He blinked in surprise. It was a pair of gloves…

"Since you failed at any other weapons you'll just have to make do with your fists, however the Ninth wanted to give you a little something extra to protect your hands and hopefully deal out more damage than your puny punches normally would."

Tsuna sighed at the insult having grown used to them from Reborn. He slipped the cloves on the leather felt cool and was a bit stiff at first, but as he flexed is hands it seemed to mold seamlessly to his skin making movement effortless. He trace the Vongola crest in the center before standing up. He looked at his friends silently. Gokudera was eyeing his clove like he wanted to say something, but reframed. Yamamoto smiled at him.

"Alright. I guess we should go then."

"Yes, Tsuna-sama!"

"Haha Alright!"

The two bickered back and forth all the way to the door and Tsuna smiled fondly at them. He didn't like the fact that he was assigned this mission, but he was grateful they were coming with him. Even if he was worried over their safety.

"By the way Dame-Tsuna, I will accompany you, but I cannot interfere."

Tsuna looked at him in alarm. "But I…I thought we'd b-be fine with you…"

Reborn jumped up and slapped him on the nose. "Don't start doubting yourself now Dame-Tsuna or you won't survive this ordeal."

"Hieee!"

After Tsuna's little freak out they headed for the front gates. Reborn disappeared for a bit before reappearing on Tsuna's head making him stumble.

"What was that for?"

"I had to make some arrangements."

"Oh…"

Tsuna decided it wasn't worth the headache that would defiantly occur if he tried to get some information out of the baby and instead focused on the road in front of him. The dirt path they were walking on curved ahead and Gokudera said they were almost there. They turned the corner and were faced with the largest gate Tsuna had ever seen. He gaped at the sheer size of the iron gateway. It reached far above his head dwarfing the trees running along the path. The wall on either side of the gate was nothing to sneeze at either. Tsuna wondered what the Vongola expected to attack them to spur them into building such a large wall.

"That wall circles the entire property, which by the way is nearly 30,000 acres. We've only seen a tiny portion of it."

Gokudera's statement made Tsuna almost faint. 30,000 acres?! Really!? He had no idea the property was that big! Reborn smacked him telling him if he continued to gape like that he'll catch flies.

"Tsuna-kun!"

"Tsuna-san!"

Tsuna jumped as two familiar faces came running up from behind them.

"Kyoko-san! Haru-san!" He blinked at them in shock. "W-What are you doing here?"

The girls glanced at each other before turning to him their eyes shining with determination.

"We're coming to!"

* * *

><p><strong>I will admit these next few chapters didn't get change a lot, but I didn't see much need too. A few more conversations and inner dialogue was added, but nothing crazy.<strong>


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: Nope**

* * *

><p>"Hieeee!?" Tsuna stepped back a little in shock. "W-What do you mean you're coming with us?"<p>

"Exactly what we said." Haru answered immediately. "We're going with you to defeat those bad guys who hurt Kyoko's brother!"

"B-But…h-how…?"

Kyoko smiled gently at his confusion. "Reborn told us what was going on and we wanted to help."

All eyes went to Reborn who was still sitting onto of Tsuna's head. Tsuna frowned when he realized that he couldn't see the baby. He opened his mouth to ask his tutor what he was thinking when he told the girls about their mission when Gokudera spoke up.

"He's asleep…"

"Haha Well he is a baby and they need their sleep."

"Shut up Baseball-Idiot! What do you know!?"

Tsuna sighed. Of course Reborn would be asleep at a time like this. The message was clear. His demonic tutor wanted him to decide what to do now. He looked at the two girl in front of him frowned with worry before looking at the ground. He wasn't one to discriminate between genders. He had seen some pretty strong girls since coming to the Vongola and he didn't doubt that the two had power. He was just afraid that they might get hurt. This wasn't training. This was the real thing and Tsuna was already panicky that Yamamoto and Gokudera might get hurt. He didn't want anyone else to either, especially since they had been so kind to him.

"Tsuna-san, my brother was hurt by these people." He looked up at the light haired girl. Her eyes were slightly unfocused as she looked beyond him at the gate.

"I…I can't just sit around and wait for someone else to stop the culprits. I'm not a very good fighter I will emit that, but I can still help. I can heal all of your wounds." Her eyes focused on his and Tsuna knew right away he couldn't argue with the determination shining in them.

"Kyoko's my friend so I'm sticking with her. I'm still learning, but I can cast some illusions and I know some hand to hand combat." Haru looked a little nervous, but still ready to face the danger a head.

Tsuna sighed. He glanced at his friends both of which had completely different opinions. Gokudera was scowling obviously not liking the idea of the two girls coming with while Yamamoto was smiling, happy no matter what decision Tsuna came too. Tsuna turned back to the girls and nodded.

"Just be careful, okay?" He pleaded quietly. "If you think you can't handle the situation don't force yourself to fight. The guys we're going to fight are dangerous."

The girls grinned at him happily and nodded.

"Well now that issue is settle let's move on shall we?"

Tsuna held back a sigh as Reborn jumped off his head and walked toward the gate as if he hadn't been taking a nap on Tsuna's head just a second ago.

"Haha Great lets go get 'em!"

"This isn't a game!"

Tsuna smiled at his two bickering friends and followed Reborn over to the small guard's house on the inside of the wall. They didn't even have to say anything before the guard opened the gate for them and lead them toward a limo parked outside the wall. A man wearing a sharp black suit stepped out of the limo from the driver's door. His bright blond hair gleamed in the sunlight and his green eyes had laugh deep lines giving him a kind appearance. The driver bowed to them and answered their silent question.

"The Ninth let us know that you need transport to the city and instructed me to drive you to the edge of downtown." The man bowed again and opened the limo door for them.

"T-Thank you."

The man smiled at his small thanks and nodded politely. "Just following orders, Sawada. No need to thank me."

Tsuna nodded shyly and climbed in after his friends who were marveling at the luxurious interior. He was too nervous about the fight ahead to fully appreciate the expense put into the vehicle, but even he could tell it was top notch if the soft leather seat was anything to go by.

"I didn't know that there was a city so close to the base." Kyoko glanced around her in awe.

"Me neither." Haru smiled at her friend.

"Well if you paid any attention you would have." Gokudera was ignoring the fancy interior in favor of sulking over the fact that the two girls were coming along. "The teacher mentioned it in History the other day."

"Haha Really? I don't remember that." Yamamoto scratched the back of his head completely oblivious of the way Gokudera was glaring at him.

"_Yes_!" He turned to Tsuna who jumped in surprise. "Tell him Tsuna-sama!"

"Uh, I don't remember either…"

"O-Oh…"

Gokudera floundered for something say as everyone laughed teasing the silver haired delinquent about his photo graphic memory. Tsuna cracked a small smile at their antics.

"They're not going to die you know." He turned to reborn in surprise. "As long as their boss man's up and protects them none of them will die."

Tsuna clutched his knees. "I'm not their boss."

"Not yet."

Tsuna didn't reply. Reborn had spoken with such finality that he knew he couldn't change the babies mind. It didn't stop him from thinking that those words sounded somewhat foreboding though.

Twenty minutes later left them standing at the edge of a large metropolis. Buildings towered high above them casting sharp shadows on the streets circling them. It would have been a magnificent site if it wasn't completely empty.

Not a soul could be seen for miles. Cars were left in the middle of the roads, some turned over others completely destroyed. The buildings had craters and slashes in them. A few of them had fallen scattering their ruble on the roads. The plants had taken over in place of human beings. Bursting out from the concrete and winding their way up buildings, covering cars.

They stood on an empty road leading into the downtown area staring at the destruction in from of them in shock and horror.

"What happened here?" It was Kyoko who spoke up first. Her hands were covering her mouth, her eyes wide.

"War." Reborn jumped up to Tsuna's shoulder and settled down as all eye turned to him. "This city along with this entire dimension was ravaged by the Millefiore in their attempt to wipe out the Vongola completely nearly fifty years ago."

Tsuna looked at the abandoned and broken city once more. He suddenly felt the weight of the threat Millefiore presented. It was hard to believe all this destruction was caused by them. He frowned wondering how many lives were destroyed due to the fighting.

"Let's keep moving. The amusement park is on opposite side of the city. In order to catch them by surprise we'll cross the downtown area instead of walking the highway."

They nodded and started heading into the city avoiding obstacles and glancing nervously around the deathly silent metropolis. It was to quiet and Tsuna could tell everyone was uncomfortable, but he was too scared to break the silence. Finally after what seemed like hours Yamamoto spoke up.

"So I don't get it. Why is the Vongola based here of all places?" He glanced at Reborn, but it was Gokudera who answered.

"The Vongola has many bases across the dimensions, but the Ninth thought it fitting to base the main branch here since it would be the last place our enemies would look. Honestly, don't you ever listen to the teacher, Baseball-Idiot? They explained that on the first day."

"Haha My mistake." Yamamoto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly and the girls giggled.

"After we capture the culprits we will most likely abandon this branch and settle in a different dimension. They may not work with the Millefiore, but this group does have ties with them so it's better to be safe than sorry." Tsuna glanced at Reborn feeling slightly thankful the baby seemed so assured with their victory.

It calmed him a little bit.

They continue chatting about trivial things as Reborn guided them through the city from Tsuna's shoulder. Every once in a while he'd slap Tsuna upside the head for saying some stupid or tripping over his own feet. The others would laugh or in the case of Gokudera fuss over him endlessly. Tsuna was starting to relax more and more.

That was until a building collapsed.

The only warning was a few bits of rubble falling on them and Reborn's shout before the skyscraper in front of them collapsed. The ground shook violently as Reborn tugged him away from the flying rubble and down a flight of stairs which must have been a subway entrance at one point. The ground was shaking too much for Tsuna to walk much less run down the stairs so before he even made it halfway down he tripped over his own feet. Tumbling head over heels down he was lucky he didn't break his neck. He hit the bottom with a sickening smack and everything went black…

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><p>Gokudera gasped for breath as he leaned against the truck he had taken shelter behind. He clutched his abdomen loosely trying to keep the dizzying pain in check. Gokudera had managed to explode most of the debris that flew at him from the collapsing of the building, but one large chuck managed to hit him in the chest. Resulting in a rather painful crawl to hide behind the large truck he was sitting behind now.<p>

He was certain that several of his ribs had snapped and the others were cracked or at the very least bruised. He struggled to breathe hoping that Kyoko girl's healing abilities were up to snuff if he wanted to fight or even breathe properly anytime soon. That is assuming the girl had survived.

He stayed there until the ground stopped shaking. He had managed to get his breathing under control, but he could only take shallow breaths. Gritting his teeth he prepared himself for pain as he forced his body to stand. He could barely make it to his knee before his nerves felt like they were on fire. He bit his lip hard enough to taste blood as he tried to gather all of his resolve in order to keep moving.

He had to find Tsuna-sama. He had to see if the other boy was alright. He had seen Reborn tugging the brunette away, but he didn't know where or if the other boy had made it to a safe place or not.

What if Tsuna-sama was hurt?

With that thought in mind he managed to stand up and take a few hesitant steps while holding onto the truck for support. The pain was intense, but Gokudera's resolve to find his precious friend was stronger. After waiting a few moments for the worst of the pain to die down he managed to walk around the truck and get a glimpse of the destruction the fallen building caused.

He frowned. Wondering why the building had fallen in the first place. Nothing he could remember could have triggered its fall. Perhaps…

"It seems as though my mission to prevent intruders has garnered interesting results."

Gokudera froze at the sound of that voice. He had only heard the other boy talk a few times, but he knew that voice.

"Chikusa Kakimoto…"

"Hayato Gokudera you are my prey."

He barely had time to dodge as the deadly red yoyo's struck towards him at alarming rates. He rolled away from the needles that spewed out of them gritting his teeth from the pain it caused him.

"Dammit!"

He tossed some dynamite to buy for time only to watch in dismay as they were disposed of immediately. There goes that plan. His mind spun trying to find a way to win, but the pain clouded his thoughts making it harder and harder to focus. His vision tunneled suddenly and he slapped his own chest to shock himself out of fainting. It hurt like hell, but it jerked him wide awake and ready to roll away from another group of needles.

He glanced around him and realized with no small amount of horror that he was cornered. With a large mound of ruble on all sides of him that he knew he couldn't climb without passing out from pain or getting hit with those needles. He knew that his enemy had done this on purpose. He couldn't believe he fell for such a simple trap.

"Bastard!"

There was only one way out now. He lit one of his smaller dynamites and braced himself for more pain as it's explode propelled him forward. He couldn't manage to land a hit on the other boy, but he did toss some more dynamite.

"Double Bomb!"

He tossed his mini-dynamites along with his normal sized one hoping he wouldn't noticed the deception and tossed some more silently towards the ground by his opponents feet.

The glasses freak fell for his trick and Gokudera pressed his advanced by tossing even more dynamites. Clutching his throbbing chest gently he allowed himself a small victory smirk. No one could withstand that amount of dynamite and live. It was a good thing too because he doubted he could move right now, much less dodge another attack. He leaned back slightly and dropped his hand from his chest too tired and sore to even have the energy to hold it up anymore.

However; he relaxed too soon it seemed, because before the dust even cleared needles shot out and stuck him.

The other boy appeared from the smoke covered in his own blood, his cloths burn and ripped beyond repair. It was amazing he was still standing. The fact that he was able to attack was a miracle. Gokudera fell back his eyes wide in shock.

He had underestimated his enemy.

"_Gokudera!_"

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><p>Tsuna woke with a splitting headache and for a moment thought he was blind. His panic was short lived when he noticed a faint light coming from his left. He got up wincing at every movement of his head and managed to turn towards it without fainting. He blinked slowly realizing that he was looking at a staircase. Dust and rubble littered its steppes, but light still filtered in from the top.<p>

He fingered the rather large lump on his forehead gently while trying to remember what had happened. He remembered walking through the empty city with his friends heading toward the abandoned amusement park. Then…Then…oh.

He remembered now. A building had suddenly collapsed and Reborn tugged him towards safety which happened to be an entrance to the underground subway. However; due to the stress of the situation and Tsuna's natural clumsiness he had fallen down the stairs. He winced as another wave of pain laced through his head from the bump. He must have passed out from the pain when he hit his head on the ground. His vision blurred and he hoped his didn't have a concussion.

Standing up he glanced around for Reborn, but the baby was out of site. Tsuna frowned, but didn't dwell on it further when he had a sudden moment of panic for his friends.

Were they okay?

Did they get hurt?

Did they…die?

He shot towards the stairs ignoring the blinding migraine in favor of searching for his friends. Worry clawed at his insides as he took the steps two at a time, something he would normally be unable to do without tripping. He neither noticed nor cared about this fact, however, and focused solely on making it to the top and finding his friends.

He would never forgive himself if they died.

He stopped short at the top with the site presented to him. He practically melted in relief when four eyes blinked at him in surprise at his sudden arrival.

Reborn looked completely untouched, which wasn't really a surprise, but seeing Yamamoto, Kyoko, and Haru looking fine aside from a few bruises and scrapes make Tsuna want to cry.

"Tsuna-san! You look terrible!" Kyoko's gasp shook him out of his daze and he looked at her in confusion.

"Your face." Haru pointed in shock.

Tsuna blinked and touch his face. He winced as his fingers met scraped and swollen skin on the right side of his face.

"Gosh Tsuna, did a piece of rumble hit you? Your whole right cheek and forehead is bruised and swollen. Not to mention that awful bump on your head." Yamamoto's voice remained light, but there was worry in his eyes.

"Nope, Dame-Tsuna just fell down some stairs and hit his head." Reborn's blunt answer made Tsuna look down in shame.

That sounded so pathetic.

"Oh, well in any case let me see it." Kyoko smiled and walked over to him.

Tsuna watch in awe as the shorter girls ring glowed brightly as her hand hovered over his face. Slowly the pain melted away leaving Tsuna feeling better than ever. He smiled and thanked the girl profusely. He glanced over at his friends still smiling before he noticed something.

"Where's Gokudera?"

Everyone's expression turned grim.

"Haru and I managed to take cover in another building and Yamamoto hid behind a car nearby. Reborn came and found us a little while after everything settled down. We tried looking for him, but we couldn't find him so we decided to head back over here to find you." Haru looked worried as she spoke.

"Haha Don't worry Tsuna we'll definitely find him!"

Tsuna smiled at his friend, but his hope was killed with Reborn's next words.

"That building falling wasn't an accident. It was obviously a trap and considering that we should probably expect an attack from the criminals. It would be best to hurry and find Gokudera since he's the next target."

They nodded and started to debate on which way to go when they heard explosions in the distance. Without a word they started running toward them. Tsuna leaped over ruble and kept up with the others without noticing Reborn's probing eyes. He felt overcome with worry over his friend and it was all he could do not to imagine what horrible things that could have befallen Gokudera.

Despite running as fast as they could they still made it to the battle to late.

Tsuna watched Gokudera fall back as the needles hit him in the chest. It all happened in a millisecond, but it seemed like slow motion to Tsuna as fear grabbed his heart in a vice grip.

"_Gokudera!_"

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><p><strong>I realize there are probably some mistakes still. I just glanced over these chapters quickly since I was coming down to the wire. Don't worry once I get everything posted for the first arc I'll go back and work on the grammarspelling mistakes. Thank you guys so much for pointing them out to me. **


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: Nothing clever to say here. I still don't own it.**

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><p>Tsuna didn't hesitate to run to Gokudera. His heart sped up in fear he reached the other boy. Gokudera was unconscious and covered in bruises and cuts, but the worst injury he could see was the group of needles imbedded in his chest oozing a large amount of blood. He didn't realize he was shaking until he reached over to check his silver haired friends pulse.<p>

He froze for a minute when he couldn't feel the faint beating, but he let out a sigh of relief when he found it. Gokudera was alive. Just barely from the looks of it, but defiantly alive.

"It looks like the other intruders managed to survive. I'll have to rectify that."

Tsuna looked behind him in slight horror when he heard that voice. Chikusa Kakimoto stood their covered in blood and burns, but with the same blank expression as always. He raised his weapons and Tsuna flinched as they blurred toward him. Luckily Yamamoto had quick reflexes and managed to cut the strings with his sword to Chikusa's yoyos before they could spew their needles at Tsuna.

"How's Gokudera?"

Tsuna jumped at the seriousness in Yamamoto's voice. "He's alive, but his wounds look serious."

Yamamoto nodded and took a step forward. Chikusa didn't looked all that threatened despite having had his weapons just destroyed which made Tsuna uneasy.

"Takashi Yamamoto. You're Ken's opponent." The beat up boy glanced around at everyone, before seemingly to arrive at a decision.

Tsuna tensed, but Chikusa simply turned around and limped off. Yamamoto moved to go chase after him, but Reborn stopped him.

"Don't Yamamoto. We need to calm down and heal the injured."

Yamamoto nodded albeit very reluctantly and returned his sword to the sheath his back. Tsuna sighed softly and turned back to Gokudera, who was looking very pale. Kyoko and Haru were by his side in an instant pushing him out of the way so they could fuss over the silver haired boy. Haru took out the needles gently and whipped the blood away from his numerous cuts while Kyoko immediately started healing the major wounds. They discussed his condition and how they planned on treating it quickly as they worked.

"Haha I guess it was a good thing we brought them along, right Tsuna?" Yamamoto's arm wrapped around his should and Tsuna nodded his eyes wide.

It took half an hour for Kyoko and Haru to heal Gokudera and Tsuna was finally able to let out a sigh of relief. He felt sick when Haru explained that the bomber had five shattered ribs and three cracked. She said it was a miracle he was able to move much less fight. The pain must have been intense. Tsuna simply nodded not trusting himself to speak. Tears welled in his eyes. This wasn't like before when Yamamoto had defended him from the fake attack. Gokudera had gotten severely injured. Gokudera got hurt because of him. His hands balled into fists at his side. His nails bit into the soft flesh of his palm. If it wasn't for him Gokudera wouldn't have been here. He would have been back at the headquarters. If it wasn't for him Onii-san wouldn't be hospitalized. It was his entire fault that people were hurt. It was his entire fault that his _friends _were hurt.

A hand landed on his should jostling Tsuna out of his self-deprecating thoughts.

"Don't blame yourself Tsuna." Yamamoto smiled gently at him. "If it's anyone's fault than it's that no good Kokuyo gang, not you."

Tsuna blinked. "Kokuyo gang?"

Yamamoto laughed and rubbed the back of his head. "Ahaha Yeah the amusement park they're hiding in is called Kokuyo Land, right? So I just labeled them the Kokuyo gang, 'cause they're hiding there."

Tsuna shook his head and laughed softly. "I guess that does make sense."

Without realizing it Tsuna had calmed down a little as he continued to chat with Yamamoto while waiting for Gokudera to wake up.

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><p>When Gokudera did wake up he found himself in a tight, to the point of slight pain, hug. He glanced down at the tufts of brown hair tickling his nose and smiled at Tsuna-sama grateful the other boy was okay even though he was currently squeezing the life out of him. Who knew the smaller boy was so strong? If he put this much strength into his punches then he'd be a fearsome opponent.<p>

Shaking his head slightly he patted the brunette's head awkwardly, wondering if should return the hug or not. Luckily he was saved from coming to a decision by Tsuna-sama letting go. The smaller boy smiled brightly up at him.

"Thank goodness you're okay!"

"Not that this isn't a heartwarming reunion, but we still have some enemies to defeat."

Despite the fact that Tsuna-sama looked upset over Reborn's comment Gokudera couldn't help, but feel relieved. He wasn't sure how he should react to the smaller boy's affections. It was awkward and new to him.

The baseball idiot helped him stand while Tsuna-sama argued half heartedly with Reborn trying to get the stubborn baby to give him more time to recover. Gokudera shooed Yamamoto's hands away and shrugged at his concerned look. He would be fine. He had to be fine. He wouldn't be able to protect Tsuna if he was left behind or treated like glass.

So he forcefully pushed the pain to the back of his mind and smiled brightly at Tsuna-sama. "I'm okay Tsuna-sama! Don't worry about me!"

The brunette hesitated looking worried, but relented when Reborn whispered something in his ear. He slumped and smiled tiredly at Gokudera.

"Well alright then. Just don't push yourself, okay?"

Gokudera nodded and Tsuna-sama's smile brightened.

With that said and done they started out in the direction Reborn pointed toward the amusement park that would soon be a battleground. With Tsuna-sama facing the other way Gokudera allowed his face to twist slightly at he continued to try and hold back the pain. His blood felt like it was on fire with every move he made. He gritted his teeth and forced his legs to keep walking even as he vision blurred.

He jerked as a small hand wrapped itself around his elbow. He glanced to his right and found the honey colored eyes of a frowning Kyoko. She tugged his arm gently signaling him to slow down. Noticing that she had something important to say he did swallowing the complaints and insult he wanted to spit at the girl for not healing him properly. Soon they were far enough behind the group that they wouldn't be over heard. Gokudera noticed that the Haru girl was distracting Tsuna. Yamamoto started helping her after glancing back at them.

"Gokudera-san there is something important I need to say." The girl didn't even glance at him, but continued to look ahead at the group in front of them. "I managed to heal all of your external wounds and even your ribs with Haru-chan's help, but those needles your attacker used were covered in poison. I did what I could, but healing poison is beyond my skill. Luckily Haru happens to be a little knowledgeable in that area. She didn't have the cure, but Reborn had a poison that would counteract the one from that needles. It saved your life, but there will be side effects. The pain you're in now is one of them."

Gokudera scowled. "Will it get worse?"

Kyoko sighed. "Yes, I'm sorry. Haru wanted you to not continue with us, but I convinced her otherwise."

"Why?"

"Because you're determined to a fault and would follow us anyway, no matter how much pain you were in. It would be better if you were with the whole group and near Haru and I should your pain get worse than on your own following us." She smiled at him and took a familiar yellow pill out of her bag. "Here's a condensed sun flame. I stole some from the infirmary when Reborn told us you guys were going out to fight. It should help with the pain for a little while."

Gokudera nodded and took the pill. He wasn't sure how to thank the girl so he just nodded a second time before walking faster trying to catch up with the rest of the group. He ignored her soft laugh, but resolved to be a little kinder to the girls. They had after all saved his life. He had sworn himself to Tsuna-sama, but it would go against his mafia upraising to continue to be cruel to them.

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><p>Yamamoto glanced over at Gokudera as he caught up with the group. The silverettes face was pinched in pain, but as soon as Tsuna's eyes landed on him he gave the boy a giant grin. Yamamoto shook his head at the other boy's stubbornness. Tsuna was going to find out eventually and be upset Gokudera didn't tell him, but Yamamoto wasn't going to be the one to say anything. He respected Gokudera's determination and knew he'd do the same if he was in his position.<p>

In any case Yamamoto decided he'd take the next fight should they be ambushed again in order to give time for Gokudera to heal and protect Tsuna and the girls. He may not have his flame to rely on, but he would try his best. Getting upset over it wouldn't help him and it only worried Tsuna. With or without his flames he'd protect his friends.

He felt his ring grow warm on his figure and glance down at it in surprise. But before he could figure out what happened Reborn had announced their arrival.

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><p>Tsuna looked up at the tall vine covered gate while his stomach twisted itself into knots. He glanced at his companions. Both the girls were staring determinedly at the gate, they're hands trembled and their eyes held hints of fear, but they didn't say a word. Yamamoto look serious as he gripped the handle of his bat. Gokudera was fighting a grimace of pain that made Tsuna want to hug the poor boy.<p>

He wasn't always the brightest, but he could tell strait away that Gokudera was still hurt. It pained him, but Reborn made it very clear that Tsuna wasn't allowed to leave Gokudera behind. Tsuna wanted to argue with the baby, but his words died on his lips when Reborn leveled him with a stern look. He didn't always understand the baby's actions, but Tsuna knew better than to resist. After all Reborn had his reasons and everything he did was to help Tsuna in the end. Tsuna knew that, but every time he saw Gokudera strained smile he couldn't help wanting to rebel against his tutor.

Tsuna turned his gaze to the gates once again. By itself it wasn't all that threatening, but Tsuna knew the danger that lurked behind it and shuddered. When Yamamoto walked closer to them Tsuna wanted to pull him back and simply call off the whole mission. He managed to restrain himself, though, remembering Onii-san.

"Well it looks like our visit is expected." Yamamoto said as he pushed the gates open easily.

Tsuna fought back the shudder that threatened to go down his spine at the ominous creak that accompanied Yamamoto's words. He took a few deep breaths trying to calm himself and took an unsteady step forward. The others followed him silently as he crossed the gate and entered the amusement park. There was no turning back now.

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><p>Yamamoto looked around warily as they entered the gate. One hand was on his bat ready to swing it at the first thing that moved. He had never felt so anxious in his life. His previous doubts started to rear their ugly heads whispering his fears in the back of his mind. What if he really couldn't handle this? What if he was only in the way of everyone else? What made Yamamoto think he could possibly take on such powerful opponents?<p>

"Hehe Found you."

He was so lost in his thoughts he barely had time to block when two clawed hands aimed for his face.

Yamamoto landed hard on the ground bringing bring his sword in front of him to block any following attacks. What he didn't expect was the ground itself to give out on him.

"Yamamoto!" "Yamamoto-san!" "Yamamoto-san!" "Baseball Idiot!"

He fell with the shouts of his friend ringing in his ears. He hit the ground with a loud thump and laid their dazed for a few moments. He didn't even see his attacker jump in the hole after him until he heard Tsuna's panicked plea for him to move. He rolled out of the way just in him his whole body throbbing from the fall. Standing up with his bat in hand he glanced suspiciously at the darkness around him. Where exactly was he?

When another attack didn't come immediately he forced himself to relax and glanced up at the worried faces of his friends. Tsuna and the girls looked about in tears while Gokudera was gritting his teeth his eye wide with worry.

"Haha I'm alright guys. Don't worry." He gave them a wide grin for good measure. The girls relax, but both Gokudera and Tsuna saw through him.

"Hehe Alright you say? You're going to be dead in a minute."

Yamamoto frowned at the familiar gravelly voice and tried to find the other boy in the darkness surrounding him. However, he couldn't see past the circle of light made by the broken ceiling above him. He heard the gasps from his friends above as they too recognized the voice.

"Is that you Joshima Ken ?" He only got a chuckle in response. "Why are you doing this?"

The clawed hand came from seemingly nowhere and Yamamoto just barely managed to dodge it.

"That's none of your business." The other boy growled his face more animalistic than Yamamoto was used too.

Yamamoto gritted his teeth and dodged another blow thrown his way. He tried attack back, but the other boy would disappear into the darkness laughing.

"I have to say I was happy you're here. The four-eyed Kappa was out cold and I was getting bored. Then you showed up and I thought I'd have a good fight, but you're rather disappointing aren't you?" Ken taunting voice seemed too echoed around Yamamoto in an eerie way.

Yamamoto froze. Every one of his own insecurities and fears were just confirmed.

He wasn't fast enough to dodge neither the next attack nor the one after that. When the barrage of attacks finally lifted Yamamoto was left barely standing with deep gashes on his chest and arms.

"Yamamoto!"

Tsuna's shout seemed far away as Yamamoto strained to see his opponent in the darkness his confidence shattered. The sword was knocked out of his hand with the next blow and he was sent to his knee's quickly after.

"Hehe Now play times over."

"No!"

Both of them looked up when the light from above was suddenly blocked and Yamamoto's eyes widened in horror when he saw Tsuna fall to the right of him. The brunette groaned, but otherwise looked unharmed.

"Eh? What's the little mouse doing down here. Oh well, I'll kill you quickly then finish off my original target."

Everything seemed to slow down for Yamamoto as Ken lifted his clawed hand and swung down towards Tsuna's unprotected neck. He heard the distant shouts of the girls and Yamamoto. He saw Tsuna's eyes widen. He felt his ring warm on his finger and suddenly he knew exactly what to do.

Without realizing it he had snatched up his sword and got between Tsuna and Ken before the killing blow could be made. His ring was practically burning him now as power seemed to build up within it, but he ignored the pain.

"I may be weak. But that doesn't mean I can't try. Even if it seems impossible I'll continue to fight. I'll never give up. I'll defiantly protect my friends!"

The power reached its peak and the ring let loose a blinding flash of blue flames. Yamamoto closed his eyes quickly hoping Tsuna remembered to do the same. To his shock the power that had been building up in the ring washed over him wrapping around him like an old friend and giving him strength. A smile stretched over his face.

Ken frown and bared his teeth his canine more prominent than Yamamoto ever remembered them being.

"What's this corny nonsense? How'd ya move that fast? " The blond growled in annoyance jumping back into the shadows when Yamamoto lashed out at him with a new found speed. However, Ken wasn't fast enough and Yamamoto felt tremendous satisfaction when he felt his sword cut through the other boy's jacket.

He heard Tsuna's gasped and Reborn explain to the other that he had just activated his rain flames, but his main focus was on the blond whom he could now sense preparing to strike to his left. He blocked the attack with ease he didn't think was possible and made a swipe at Ken's shoulder. He managed to make a shallow gash before the boy jumped away again.

He narrowed his eyes and brought his sword up to block the next attack as well only to have to jump back as the other boy's teeth shattered the metal. His eyes widened in surprise.

"What?!" Tsuna was starting to panic. Yamamoto wanted to reassure the other boy, but without his sword he wasn't sure how he'd win this fight. He had access to his flames now, but he had no idea how to use it.

"Gah." The blond spit out pieces of metal and growled at Yamamoto his eyes blazing. "I didn't want to use this on small fry like you, but I have no choice."

He held up three different sets of fake teeth that glowed faintly with sun flames to everyone confusion. Yamamoto frowned wondering if the other boy was joking.

"Yamamoto, be careful." Tsuna murmured making Yamamoto tense immediately.

Ken smirked nastily and took out the pair he already had in and switched them with another.

"Hehe when I change my teeth I adopted the abilities of different animals."

With a new set in play Yamamoto watch with slight horror as the other boys body stretch and changed. When the change was finished he resembled a gorillas crossed with a human.

"Kong Channel!"

Yamamoto was sent flying into the darkness and smashing into a wall before he knew what was happening and he groaned from the pain feeling his bones creak ominously. Yamamoto jumped up. Tsuna was looking around frantically obviously not able to see him due to the darkness.

"I'm fine Tsuna." He said softly in order to ease the other boys mind. The brunette let out a sigh of relief. Yamamoto smiled at the smaller boys worry before glancing around for his opponent; however he couldn't find Ken, which surprised him since the boy had grown so big due to his Kong Channel.

"My wolf channel allows me to find you even in the dark by tracking the scent of your blood."

The words were whispered shocking close to his ear causing Yamamoto to jump back in order to dodge the next attack. More attacks were thrown at him forcing Yamamoto to continuously dodge in order not to get hit. His mind was in a whirl trying to figure out what he should do. He knew that he had to protect Tsuna and in order to do that he needed to defeat Ken, but he didn't know how he could do that without a weapon.

"Huh, you're pretty fast now. Alright, I'll use my Cheetah Channel!"

"Yamamoto! Look out!"

It was only thanks to Tsuna's cry that Yamamoto managed to dodge the next assault. Yamamoto flew back when the next attack hit him in the chest and he landed painfully a few yards away. Knowing that there would be another attack Yamamoto raised his arm up to block as his other grappled for something he could use as a weapon. His hand closed around the hilt of his broken sword just as Ken's mouth latched onto his arm. He gritted his teeth in pain as his grip on the sword went lax.

"Yamamoto!"

"I got ya!"

Yamamoto pushed the pain to the back of his mind and shifted his grip on the broken sword.

"Thanks for making this easier for me I was having a hard time trying to figure out how to beat you."

The blonde's eyes widened, but before he could jump back Yamamoto nailed him in the head with the butt of the sword coated in rain flames. Watching as the other boy collapsed unconscious on the ground Yamamoto let out a relief. His friend cheered and Tsuna ran up and hugged him muttering his worries and congratulations repeatedly under his breathe. Yamamoto patted the poor shaking boy on the back while grinning like a moron.

He did it. He really did it.

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><p><strong>Rapid updates! I doubt you guys even had the chance to read twelve yet. XD<strong>


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: I don't own KHR and never will unfortunately. **

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><p>Tsuna helped Yamamoto tie up Ken with the rope that Reborn had tossed down to them while eyeing his friend's injuries with worry. The gashes he got from the blonds claws weren't that deep, but they're bleeding quite a bit. The bite on Yamamoto's arm was what frightened him. Tsuna was having a hard time even looking at the injury with all the blood and mutilated flesh. He clinched his teeth trying to throw up while shuddering. He wished he could do more to help his friend, but even glancing at it made his stomach roll uncomfortably.<p>

Yamamoto on the other had seemed to not even notice his injuries and finished tying the unconscious Ken while whistling a toneless song. Tsuna was never one prone to violence, but he sorely wished his had the courage to slap his friend upside the head and scold him about taking care of himself first. He opened his mouth to at least try and scold Yamamoto, but Gokudera beat him to it, when they were pulled out of that place. The resounding slap to the head made Tsuna flinch.

"Baseball Idiot! Don't go acting like everything's fine! You're bleeding everywhere!" He turned to Kyoko his eyes burning in frustration and worry. "What are you doing just standing there?! You're a healer, fix him!"

Kyoko nodded her eyes wide. She scurried pasted Gokudera and started to attend to Yamamoto without a word. Yamamoto laughed a little breathlessly from pain, while Haru proceeded to hit Gokudera and shout at him for yelling at Kyoko.

"Just because you're worried about your friend doesn't mean you can take it out on others!"

"I wasn't worried!"

Tsuna laughed softly at their antics and knelt by Yamamoto. He still wasn't able to look at his arm so he focused on his face.

"Are you okay?"

Yamamoto grinned good-naturedly. "Haha It hurts a bit, but I'll be fine."

Kyoko shook her head. "I'd image this hurts more than just a little bit."

Tsuna smiled at Yamamoto. "You don't have to pretend I can tell you're in a lot of pain."

He shook his head as Yamamoto floundered for a response. "Anyway, thanks for saving me. I was pretty useless, as usual, but you managed to hold your own and even activated your flames."

Tsuna opened his mouth, but his next comment was turned into a squeal of pain when a tiny foot made its home on the back of his head. He clutched his poor abused head as Reborn settled on his shoulder.

"What was that for?" Tsuna whined.

"Being pathetically useless and emitting to it casually. You're the Vongola Heir, act like it."

Tsuna sighed wishing he really could be stronger just by deciding to be. Unfortunately, it was a lot harder than that, for him at least. His head jerked to the side as Reborn graced him with another kick to the head.

"Stop thinking pathetic thoughts."

Tsuna hung his head in defeat. Even his thoughts weren't safe from his crazy teacher!

Yamamoto chuckled. "I'm glad though. If you hadn't jumped down I might not have gotten the resolve to beat him."

Tsuna turned back to him his eyes wide. "But, but I was useless. I was just a sitting duck _again._ You had to jump in front of me _again._"

Yamamoto laughed and rubbed the back of his head with his other hand before pausing and looking at him again. "Well, you know I had a hard time getting your injury out of my head."

Tsuna looked at him in confusion. What injury?

Yamamoto looked a little sheepish. "When you were hit by Gokudera's bombs…that was really scary. I didn't want to see you like that again. Both time I jumped in front of you that image came to mind."

Tsuna stared at him a moment before smiling slightly. It seemed Yamamoto was in the same boat as him. Constantly bombarded with images of his friends injured he tried to pushed himself to get stronger. He tried pushing past his limited, until Reborn slapped some sense into him. He looked down at his glove clad hands. Maybe he'll be able to find his resolve again too. Just like Yamamoto did today.

"Alright, I've healed the wound on your arm and closed the other slashes. You should still be careful though, they can reopen if you push yourself to hard." Kyoko said as she tied of the last of the bandages on Yamamoto's arm.

Tsuna watched as Yamamoto grinned and flexed his arm a bit. He tried to hide the wince, but Tsuna saw it. He just shook his head and gave the boy a tired smile.

"So the Baseball Idiot is healed now? Great! Let's go we've wasted enough time already." Gokudera scowled at Yamamoto pointedly.

"Haha I didn't know we were on a time limit."

Tsuna shook his head as they started another argument. It was a little unconventional, but he was grateful for their constant bickering. It put him at ease to see them acting the same despite the situation and the amount of pain both of them must be in right now. Standing up they all started to walk toward the main building of Kokuyo Land. The apprehension was thick, but Yamamoto and Gokudera did everything they could to dissolve it which made Tsuna smile even as his hands continued to shake in fear.

"Ah, sorry Reborn, but the sword you gave me was broken in the fight." Yamamoto rubbed that back of his head in embarrassment as Gokudera muttered 'idiot' under his breathe.

"That's fine. I brought a spare just in case something like this happened. It never hurts to be prepared."

"Haha Cool!"

Tsuna sighed and shook his head. How did his life get so strange so suddenly?

* * *

><p>Mukuro gazed distastefully at the former prisoners of the Vindice. He had broken them out for the specific purpose of testing the Vongola Heir's power. He also wanted to test his skills against the Vongola, but that was a personal goal. If the Heir couldn't make it past them then it wasn't his problem, but if he could then Mukuro would consider taking him seriously. Despite the plan being of his own creation, he still found the convicts rather distasteful on a base level. None of them even had very strong flames, but they served their purpose so he decided not to dwell on those thoughts too long.<p>

He dismissed them to go have their fun with the Vongola Heir and his little group of misfits before sighed in annoyance and walking over to the cracked window.

He frowned as he gazed out of the window unseeingly. Tsunayoshi Sawada was the Vongola Heir. He wouldn't lie to himself and say he wasn't a little unnerved by this turn of events. He had always been right in his observations of others. With everything that happened to him it was a necessary skill for survival. Despite his carefully mastered skill he still didn't even consider Tsunayoshi for the Vongola Heir position more than a brief moment.

He turned sharply, startling Chikusa who was still laying down on the beat up couch recovering from his injuries.

He paid the other boy no mind despite the signs pointing to him. Those sign were irritatingly obvious to him now as he looked back on the past week. The weakling was the son of Iemitsu Sawada the leader of the CEDEF. It wasn't very well known, but due to Mukuro's contacts he knew that the man was a descendant of the first Vongola boss. This took care of one of the requirements for Tsunayoshi to be considered the Heir. The other was having a sky flame.

Those signs were much more subtle, but had Mukuro been focusing instead of glossing over the weakling he would have spotted them sooner. The boy drew the strangest of people to him and calmed their own issues with his kindness and open heart. Hayato Gokudera, who was known for his temper didn't lose it as often in Tsunayoshi presence. Takeshi Yamamoto a troubled young man who tended to push others away without them even realizing it smiled genuinely to Tsunayoshi. Ryohei Sasagawa was quieter and even that annoying cow child was less violent. All of these facts pointed to the accepting nature of the sky flame. They were known for drawing in comrades and forming bonds quickly. If he had been looking Mukuro could have seen the signs of a sky flame long before it escalated to this point.

The fact that he didn't and he made such a huge mistake in his judgment of Tsunayoshi could only mean he too was, at least partially, drawn to the boy. He claimed the boy was too weak, but also refused to believe that he'd be the Heir because of his kind disposition. He couldn't believe that Tsunayoshi, who shook and trembled at his very presence, would be the next boss of the hypocritical organization he despised. If he was honest he'd admit that he didn't _want_ to believe, but he wasn't so he didn't.

He closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them his signature smirk was in place. "However unsuited for the position Tsunayoshi is the Vongola Heir. So, he'll have to die."

* * *

><p>Tsuna felt a shiver go down his spine and paused to glance around. What was that foreboding feeling? He looked toward main building that still seemed so far despite how long they had been walking. His gut twisted and he frowned. Something bad was going too happened very soon. He wasn't sure how he knew, but he did and it scared him greatly.<p>

"Tsuna-san?"

Tsuna blinked back to reality and jumped at least two feet in surprise at the soft voice of Kyoko beside him. He blushed as she giggled at his antics.

"I'm sorry, w-what did you need, Kyoko-san?" He scratched his cheek and added as an afterthought. "Oh and you don't have to add that 'san', everyone else just calls me Tsuna."

"Okay Tsuna, you can just call me Kyoko then. You had just zoned out for and I was a little worried the stress was getting to you." She smiled gently at him.

"Thank you." He looked down at his feet debating about telling her the truth. "I just got a bad feeling that's all."

"About this whole situation or something specific?"

"I don't really know. It's kind of weird, but it almost felt as though someone was watching me and I got a bad feeling from them about what's to come."

She nodded frowning slightly. "This whole situation is scary. I was angry about my brother's injury and felt useless just sitting by him in the hospital. When Reborn told Haru and I about this mission I didn't have a doubt about going. I didn't realize how dangerous this mission would be, but healing Gokudera-san's and Yamamoto-san's wounds has made me understand the consequences."

She looked at the ground as they started to walk toward the rest of the group, which was now ahead of them. Tsuna waited for her to continue wondering if it really was a good idea to allow the girls to come.

"My hands are shaking in fear." She spoke quietly holding up her trembling digits. "But even so, I still want to help. I can't do much, but for my brothers sake and all the others who were injured I'll be brave."

"Kyoko you can do a lot more than you give yourself credit for. After all you used your sun flames to heal Gokudera and Yamamoto." Tsuna shook his head at her and smiled a little sadly. "That's more than I've been able to do so far."

Kyoko opened her mouth to say something when Haru called out to them for up a head.

"Hey, Slowpokes! We're going to stop for a short break hurry up so we can eat something!"

"Don't call Tsuna-sama a slowpoke!"

Tsuna glanced at Kyoko who smiled at shook her head as Haru and Gokudera got into another fight. "We better hurry up before Gokudera starts pulling out his bombs."

Kyoko laughed and agreed as Tsuna speed up eyeing the rocks on the path warily.

"I don't think you're useless Tsuna." Tsuna glanced back in surprise.

Kyoko grinned and held up her hands. "Just talking to you made my hands stop shaking and I'm sure Gokudera-san and Yamamoto-san are just as grateful you're here with them. You don't always have to fight to play an important role."

Tsuna blinked in surprise. "Ah, thank you Kyoko, but I'm the V…well I just have to be strong and fight."

Kyoko nodded, but didn't look as though she agreed. They walked the rest of the way to the group in silence. Tsuna frowned wanting to tell her that he was the Vongola Heir and that was the reason he had to be strong. But he was worried that she'd be mad at him because he was basically the reason behind all of the attacks. He wasn't sure what Reborn told them, but was sure the baby didn't tell the girls about him being the Vongola Heir. He didn't get that chance to reflect on his dilemma for long because as soon as they reached the rest of the group he was assaulted by Gokudera asking if he was alright while trying to feel his forehead for a fever and cram food down his throat all at once.

"I'm fine Gokudera!"

"But you're pale and had a sad look on your face, Tsuna-sama!"

Yamamoto managed to pull the bomber off and Tsuna grinned weakly at him clutching the sandwich that was shoved in his hand for dear life. He didn't know what he was thinking before when he thought the grumpy Gokudera was scary. The concerned Gokudera was way scarier and slightly more dangerous to his health and sanity.

He took a bite while watching his friends argue before realizing something. He blinked down at the sandwich in his hand. "I didn't know we had food."

"I thought we might get hungry so Kyoko and I made some sandwiches really quick." Haru grinned. "That's why we were a little late. Do you want a drink?"

She pulled a water bottle from her backpack and held it out to him. Tsuna smiled and went to grab it when it exploded suddenly.

"Hahi!"

"HIEEEEE!"

Haru jumped back, while Tsuna stumbled back and fell on his butt. "W-What!?"

Both Yamamoto and Gokudera tossed their sandwiches away as they started to exploded as well while Haru and Kyoko got rid of theirs just in case.

"We're under attack." Reborn's high pitch voice cut through their panic.

Gokudera was the first to react and tossed his dynamite toward the attacker, but to no avail. The smoke dissipated and revealed an unharmed girl a few years older than them.

"Hm, you guys are pathetic. I can't believe you took out Chikusa and Ken." The girl stood and brandished her clarinet much to everyone's confusion. "Oh well, I guess I'll finish the job they started."

With a few notes of her instrument the sandwich in Tsuna's hand exploded violently. Reborn shove him back preventing him from being killed in the blast.

"Tsuna-sama!" "Tsuna!" "Tsuna-kun!" "Tsuna!"

Tsuna laid there a little dazed before Reborn kicked him out of it and he jumped up and blindly hid behind the nearest rock.

"Hiee. Another battle so soon?!"

He was kicked again. "Stop whining. Look your precious friends are stepping up to fight while you hide here pathetically."

Tsuna glanced up sharply his stomach doing nervous flips. He expected Gokudera and Yamamoto, but instead saw Haru and Kyoko preparing to fight. He glanced at his two male friends. Gokudera looked like he wanted to interfere, but Yamamoto was holding him back. When the baseball lover noticed Tsuna looking at them he gave him a reassuring smile.

"Let them fight Tsuna. They're determined to try."

Tsuna nodded reluctantly at him and turned his gaze back to the three girls with apprehension.

"Your clarinet is built like a micro-wave isn't it?" Haru's ring was glowing with her mist flames as she glared at their opponent. "The special sound waves from your instrument cause the atoms hit to vibrate at an extremely high temperature making the substance reach its boiling point immediately and causing it to explode."

The red haired girl smirked. "So, what? A weak little girl like you couldn't do anything even knowing how my weapon works."

She was so focused on Haru she didn't notice Kyoko until she was already striking. The girl managed to jump back, but was still hit by Kyoko's punch which was amplified by her sun flames.

"She's very different from her brother, but their fighting style is similar." Reborn commented as if nothing was wrong and two of Tsuna friends weren't fighting a crazy clarinet wielding red head.

Kyoko jumped back to avoid a direct attack from the clarinet and Haru attack the girl from the left. However, the girl saw her coming and kicked her in the stomach. Haru gripped her leg briefly as if to try and diminish the damage, but let go and backed off quickly, while clutching her stomach..

Tsuna's teeth were on edge as he watched the battle. Even though the girls were doing well and it was two against one, he was still worried. His hands clinched as a wave of irritation over his own weakness overwhelmed him for a moment. Why was he so useless?!

Kyoko attacked again, frowning in concentration. This time she got a solid hit to the shoulder causing the other girl to cry out and spit insults. Haru swept her feet out from under her while she was distracted. The girl quickly rolled to her feet glaring daggers at her opponents and strike Kyoko swiftly with the clarinet which had separated into two pieces with a chain linking them. Kyoko was hit across the face and hit the ground with a nasty sounding crack, but still managed to roll to avoid the next attack.

"I wasn't being serious before, but now you've pissed me off!" She swung at Haru who just barely managed to avoid the weapon her eyes wide with surprise.

Tsuna nearly hyperventilated at the turn the fight was starting to make, but something in Haru's eyes managed to calm him. She seemed as though she was waiting for something. Tsuna frowned watching her dodged the onslaught of attacks her opponent was throwing at her. She wasn't panicking, but looking intently at the other girl. Kyoko was standing again, but she didn't make a move to attack again and instead raised her hand to her already bruising cheek and started to heal it while keep a sharp eye on the fight.

Gokudera was the first one to notice what was happening. "She's slowing down."

Tsuna blinked in surprise and looked at the red head closing and to his surprise she was slowing down. Her precise movements were starting to look sluggish and she kept stumbling over her own feet. Her eyes were wide obviously surprised and frightened at her lack of control. All it took was a weak snap kick from Haru to send the older girl toppling over. Haru proceeded to relinquish the girl of her weapon and turned to where they were grinning from ear to ear.

"It worked!" Tsuna smiled uncertainly at the excited girl not really understanding what just happened.

Luckily Gokudera explained for him when he saw Tsuna's lost look. "She poisoned her. Remember when she grabbed her leg at the beginning of the battle? She must have injected some poison into her bloodstream. The fight after that was simply a waiting game until the poison kicked in and took her down."

Haru's grinned widened, if that was even possible, and showed them her right palm where a strange devise was attached. A circle with a small tact like spike in the center was attached to her hand by a skin colored fingerless glove.

"Eh? How did I not notice that?"

"Haha I didn't either, don't worry Tsuna." Yamamoto patted him on the back.

"I used a simple illusion to hide it." Haru explained. She looked down shyly. "I'm not very good at illusions yet. I can't make an object completely disappear from view, but I can hide it by casting an illusion that distracts you from looking in that direction or in this case my right hand."

"Don't belittle yourself. The art of illusions is a hard thing to master. You are doing well for a beginner."

Haru blushed at Reborn's praise looking like she wanted to squeeze the life out of him, but was just barely holding herself back. Kyoko walked over to the group having finished healing her face.

"Do you need me to heal anything Haru?"

"No thanks, I'll be fine."

They all turned to the collapsed red head who was now glaring pathetically at them from her prone position on the ground. Haru shook her head disapprovingly as the girl tried to move.

"That won't work. The poison I gave you wasn't fatal, but causes paralyses for at least eight hours. You'll be tired and sluggish for twenty-four hours and therefore in no condition to fight. Just give it up already."

Tsuna frowned at the girl. "What are we going to do with her?"

"Leave her." Reborn answered immediately. "When we defeat the rest of the group then the Vongola will take care of all the casualties."

Tsuna nodded liking the sound of _when _instead of _if._ Now all they had to do was defeat the rest of the group…

"Reborn?"

"What Dame-Tsuna?"

"Why wasn't she one of the people you told us about?!" His voice went high as he tried to hold in his signature screech during his slight panic attack. "You only told us about Chikusa, Ken and that other scary guy, Lancia!"

Reborn merely kicked Tsuna in the head causing him to fall over. As he calmed down while staring up at the sky Tsuna wondered if he'd get brain damaged from Reborn's frequent kicks to the head. He heard Gokudera complaining about unknown opponents and Yamamoto trying to calm him down. He took a deep breath and sat up looking at Reborn for answers now that he was calmer. Reborn acknowledged his silent request with a nod.

"There was a prison break this morning from the Vindice, but with all of the attacks it went largely unnoticed. There was only a slight chance that Lancia would team up with these guys especially since they're completely unrelated to him and they don't have strong flames, so the Ninth thought it best not to mention it. Obviously that assumption has been proven wrong."

Tsuna nodded taking in deep breathe to remain calm. Yamamoto thankfully asked the next question for him.

"So how many escaped?"

"Four including her." He gestured to the still glaring red head. "We can safely assume she's M.M., her fellow convicts are Birds, and the Bloody Twins."

Tsuna sighed heavily. This was getting more and more complicated.

* * *

><p>Grey eyes glared at the wall that trapped him in this makeshift prison cell. The fact that glaring was the only thing he could do at this point irritated him greatly. Never had he been so incapacitated by a herbivore before. His fingers twitched itching to bite that infuriately pineapple to death for his cheating ways.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Another chapter that didn't change much. There was the added conversation with Yamamoto, some Tsuna angst and some little tidbits with Mukuro, but overall I was happy with the original. <strong>


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: Nope**

* * *

><p>Tsuna sighed as everyone dusted themselves off and prepared to continue forward. His stomach rumble in irritation over his lost meal, but he ignored it. He glanced up toward the main building again wondering if Fuuta was alright. It made him sick that someone would use a child just to get to him. He didn't feel like he was worth hurting anyone over, but it seemed as though everyone else thought differently. All of his friends were risking their lives trying to help and protect him while he cowered and trembled at the very thought of fighting someone. Regret twisted in his gut and he frowned at his own weakness.<p>

His detrimental thoughts were cut short, however, by a slimy voice that sent shivers down his spine.

"Ah, I see you've managed to take down that greedy little girl over there."

Everyone froze and looked toward the voice. The small old man grinned sadistically at their shock. He stood a head of them a few yard in front of a broken down wall that must have been a small building at one point. Gokudera and Yamamoto appeared immediately in front of Tsuna in case of a surprise attack, but none came.

"It's alright I won't be attack you, at least not directly." He held up a laptop. "Here look at this."

Tsuna gasped in horror when he realized it was a live feed of Lambo and I-Pin playing sedately outside.

"These two little ones managed to sneak away from their caretakers. They are my next target."

Tsuna's hands clinched, his nails bit into the palm of his hand. More people were being threatened because of him!

"How do you plan to hurt them when you're here and they're safe in the Vongola Headquarters?" Gokudera asked his eyed narrowed into a fierce glare.

"Ah, yes, hold on let me show you." He pressed a few buttons and set the laptop down. The broken wall behind him started to display the images on the laptop enlarging the view of the two children. "My name is Birds and with the camera's attached to my, well, birds, I can spy on your little friends."

"Good for you, but that doesn't explain…"

Gokudera's irritated reply was cut off by Haru.

"Oh no, who are they!?"

Tsuna's eyes widened when he noticed the two men on the edge of the screen. They were horribly pale and emaciated and moved in a strange fashion.

"So you've noticed my associates." The little laugh the man let out sent shivers down Tsuna's spine. "Those are the Bloody Twins. They're a pair of twin hitmen who are loyal to me."

Tsuna shivered again as the twins faces received a close up. Their mouths were disfigured and their eyes blood shot.

"See their faces? That's the result of being lock up for ten years without their restraints removed even once. They're serial killers you know."

"What!?" He should have realized this when the man said they were hitmen, but he was still taken by surprise at the fact that they were serial killers. He gulped not liking where these events were going. He wanted to shout for the children to run, but he knew they wouldn't hear him. He turned to seek Reborn's help only to find the baby sleep on a rock behind him.

"I see you all are starting to understand the situation." Birds grin was wide and sickening. "As long as you follow my orders the children won't be hurt."

"Bastard!" Gokudera was on him in a second ready to hurt him. "They're just children you sicko!"

Birds only laughed. "You better not touch me lest you want those precious children to be hurt."

Gokudera backed off reluctantly muttering curses. Kyoko's eyes were wide with worry while Haru's were narrow in hate. Yamamoto was just as tense as Gokudera and twice as scary with the serious look in his eyes. He gripped his bat tightly ready to attack if given a chance that would put the children harm's way.

"So, now that you've gotten that out of your system, let's play a game." Birds grin widen as his eyes settled on Tsuna. "First I would like one of you to punch the Vongola Heir."

Yamamoto, Gokudera and Tsuna flinched as the girls looked confused. Birds point toward him when no one moved.

"Let me clarify. I want one of you to punch Tsunayoshi Sawada over there."

Tsuna looked at his feet not wanting to see the girls shocked expressions. When he finally got the guts to look up he didn't see any angry at being kept in the dark, but understanding and worry over their opponents order. He looked at his feet again. His hands were trembling. He didn't want to be punched especially by his friends, but Lambo and I-pin were in trouble!

"Someone please just do it." He murmured looking at them imploringly. "The kids will be hurt otherwise."

"Tsuna-sama…" Gokudera tried to argue, but Tsuna shook his head and smiled at him.

"It's just one punch, right?"

It was the least he could do considering all the pain his friends went through fighting their other opponents. He nodded to himself. He was weak and scare witless, but he could do this at the very least for his friends. Gokudera looked like the world was crashing down on his at the thought of hurting his precious Tsuna-sama and Yamamoto looked positively sick, but he stepped forward anyway. Tsuna gave him a small smile and closed his eyes bracing himself.

"Now don't go giving a weak punch. Go all out." The fake sweetness in Birds voice made Tsuna want to throw up, but he didn't open his eyes.

"I'm really sorry Tsuna." Yamamoto said quietly before his fist hit home.

Tsuna fell on his butt from the impact and tried not to cry at the sudden burst of pain. He gritted his teeth. He really was pathetic if he couldn't handle one punch in the face. Slowing he got to his feet with the help of Yamamoto. He touch his swelling cheek and sigh reminding himself that this was all for the kids. Kyoko came over ready to heal him, but Birds next words stopped her.

"No, no you're not allowed to heal the Vongola Heir little miss. That's against the rules and if you break them…well…" He gestures toward the screen where the Bloody Twins were creeping closing to the oblivious Lambo and I-Pin.

Kyoko frown, but nodded slowing while backing off.

"Hehehe I love seeing people frighten faces." Birds laughed. "Now what should we do next? Any suggestions?"

"Lets us beat the crap out of you." Gokudera growled.

"No, that won't do." He debated for a few seconds before looking at Tsuna again with a large grin "I know!"

He pulled a dagger out of his jacket and held it out towards them. "Stab the Vongola Heir with this dagger. All the way to the hilt please."

Tsuna's eyes widened in horror. "No way…"

"That's not going to happen you creep!" Gokudera shouted.

"There's no way we'd do that." Yamamoto shook his head his eyes wide.

"Crazy, this is all crazy." Haru muttered wringing her hands in distress.

"Hehehe. What wonderful faces you're all making." Birds laughed petting the bird on his shoulder. "Weeellll, if you don't want to do it. I'll just tell my friends to… "

The Bloody twins lurched forward on the screen advancing on the children quickly.

"No!" Tsuna cut him off. "I-I'll do it. I'll stab myself! Just don't hurt them!"

He glared at the ground his hands in fists at his sides. He took a deep breathe, ignoring his friends protest, and walked toward the man intend on taking the knife and following through with the order.

'_If this is what I have to do to protect my friends then I'll do it.' _He thought to himself. _'I won't let innocent kids get hurt or killed just because I was to scare to get hurt myself.'_

He took the knife and back away again. He tried to get his shaking hands to still not wanting to make the wound worse as his friends continued to try and talk him out of it.

"It's okay. I'll be fine." He wasn't sure how he managed to keep his voice so steady when his hands were trembling so badly. "It's not like I'm stabbing myself in the heart, right?"

Even as he said that he felt like a large stone had made its home in his stomach. He knew that there was something more to this order than Birds was letting on and his creepy grin didn't help his nerves at all. He stared down at the knife dreading having to do this, but accepting it all the same. Deciding to stab his leg he wrapped both his hands around the hilt and raised it above his head intending to make it quick.

A scream from the screen stop him and for a moment his heart stopped thinking that Lambo or I-Pin had been hurt. His fear melted away, however, when he saw one of the Bloody Twin collapse with a face full of Bianchi's poison cooking. A man wearing a doctor's coat Tsuna had never met stood between the kids and the other twin.

"Doctor Shamal!?" Gokudera gasped behind him sounding both relieved and horrified at the same time.

Tsuna watched as the remaining twin jerked and twitched before collapsing. Tsuna shook his head in amazement at this turn of events. Hearing Reborn's quiet cough for attention he turn his eyes to the now awake baby.

"After telling Kyoko and Haru about the mission I went to Bianchi and Shamal to watch over the kids just in case something like this happened. With the attacks on innocent new recruits I figure our enemy wasn't above using those kids to further their goals."

Tsuna sighed in relief. Reborn had said he couldn't get involved in the fighting, but he was grateful his small tutor took it upon himself make sure those not involved were protected.

"So now that those twin freaks are out of the picture we can beat this guy up right?" Gokudera cracked his knuckles.

"Haha I think he should pay for the pain Tsuna suffered." Yamamoto advanced smiling menacingly.

"For once I agree with you Baseball Idiot."

"Hey, I want to beat him up too! How dare his threaten children?! The scum bag!" Haru pitched in waving her fist in anger.

Tsuna smiled at his friend's exuberance and shook his head. The knife he forgot was in his hand dropped to the ground as he turned away from his friend's subsequent beating of Birds who apparently relied solely on the Bloody Twins to back him up. Kyoko hurried by his side ready to heal his cheek now that the threat was gone, but he shook his head.

"I'm alright. Save your energy for some more serious injuries."

"Well, if you're sure…" Kyoko frowned letting her hands fall to her side.

It didn't take long for the three to tire from beating Birds senseless. Tsuna smiled at Gokudera as he fussed over his cheek like a mother hen. He glanced at Yamamoto who hung back an uncertain smile fixed on his face.

"Yamamoto, I don't blame you for hitting me. I'm the one who asked for it after all and we really had no choice. Don't worry about it, okay?"

The smiled Tsuna got was still a little strained, but the other boy knew Tsuna didn't blame him now. Tsuna hoped that knowledge would help him get over it.

"We've spent enough time in this place. Let's move on and beat Lancia so that we can rescue Fuuta and go home."

Tsuna nodded toward Reborn grinning at their success so far.

"Hey! Show yourself!" Haru sudden called out to the batch tree on the hill to their right.

"Haru?" Kyoko questioned.

"I know I saw a movement." The other girl replied seriously.

Everyone turned waiting with baited breathe over who'd come out. Tsuna's imagination went wild with all of the horrible possibilities, but the figure that stepped out was not one he expected.

'"Fuuta!"

"What's he doing out here?" Gokudera questioned.

"Haha He must have managed to escape!" Yamamoto exclaimed with his usual cheeriness.

Tsuna frowned. Something didn't seem right. He stepped forward worried suddenly over the boy quiet demeanor.

"Fuuta?"

Tears welled up in the boys eyes. "Tsuna-nii…I'm sorry!"

He turned and ran into the woods without another word. Tsuna didn't hesitate and chased after him. He heard his friend's surprised exclamations, but continued forward hoping to catch up to Fuuta and figure out what the foreboding feeling he had meant.

* * *

><p>Yamamoto jerked to the side just in time as a steel beam flew past Gokudera and himself as they tried to follow Tsuna.<p>

"The hell?" Gokudera shouted.

He frowned and looked toward their newest opponent with trepidation. The scared face from the pictures Reborn showed them met his eyes and he tensed realizing this was an extremely dangerous situation. When Gokudera tried to run after Tsuna again Lancia swung his giant ball toward the hill, destroying it completely.

Gokudera jumped back clutching his chest with a pained look on his face.

"Were you hit?" Yamamoto asked quietly while keeping an eye on Lancia.

"No." Gokudera ground his teeth together for a moment before continuing. "The pain from the poison is getting worse. I… don't think I can fight him in this state. I can hardly see strait."

Yamamoto nodded not showing his dread at the prospect of not having Gokudera fighting with him. "Alright get back and see if Kyoko can do anything for the pain. I'll hold him off as long as I can."

Lancia started to swing his weapon again as Yamamoto stepped closer making it clear he was the man's opponent.

"Give up now or die a painful death." Lancia murmured in an oddly soft voice.

"Haha Sorry I can't do that."

His only goal was to protect his friends and hopefully prevent Tsuna from even having to fight this guy. He charged forward. Lancia shrugged slightly and attacked. His weapon shot forward with surprising speed, but Yamamoto thought he could dodge it.

He was wrong.

He just barely managed to bring his weapon between himself and Lancia's wrecking ball before he was hit so hard he flew backwards several yards from the impact.

"Yamamoto!"

He heard Haru shout, but couldn't reply till he got his breathe back.

"Now you see there is no hope. You should all surrender now."

Yamamoto took a deep breath and sat up with a grin firmly fixed on his face. He didn't want the girls to worry, though he knew Gokudera would see right through it.

"Hey, hey I'm not done just yet."

He smiled as he tried to figure out a way to counter his opponent weapon. He jumped to his feet as Lancia attack again. Diving to the side he used his bat to toss loss dirt and ruble into the wrecking balls path. Sure enough his idea paid off and he got to see the air currents circling the ball. Rolling out of the way he barely managed to dodge as the wrecking ball shattered the ground where he had just been.

Now armed with the knowledge of how to dodge the deadly attack Yamamoto jumped up and charge again.

"It's useless. I will win."

His efforts were in vain, however, as Lancia reversed the attack sending Yamamoto flying strait into the wrecking ball which threw him into a tree. For a few scary moments he couldn't breathe. He gasped for breathe eyes wide. A thousand thoughts went through his head in a millisecond. His friends faces flashed through his mind as he started to black out from the pain.

'_Everyone…Tsuna…I'm sorry, I failed'_

Everything faded to black as he fell into unconsciousness.

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><p>Haru could only watch in horror as Yamamoto hit the tree with a painful sounding crack. Kyoko rushed over immediately, but Yamamoto had already passed out. Gritting her teeth and trying to will her hands to stop shaking she jumped between her friends and Lancia. If Yamamoto couldn't defeat him she doubted she could, but with Gokudera collapse from pain and Kyoko trying to heal Yamamoto she was the only one who could defend them.<p>

Lancia sighed as his eyes landed on her and started to swing his weapon once more.

"If you want to live then give up. I haven't even used a fraction of my strength. You are no match for me."

Haru shivered, but didn't move.

"This is bad." Reborn muttered from his place at Gokudera's side.

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><p>Tsuna lay gasping on the ground after tripping over a tree root while chasing Fuuta. There was no sign of the young boy and Tsuna had no idea where he was now. Pushing himself to his feet he glanced around the silent forest hoping to see the way he came from. When he couldn't figure it out he sighed and chose a random direction.<p>

"I wish I had never run off." He muttered to himself. "Now I'm lost in enemy territory without my friends and no idea of where I am."

He sighed and trudged on hoping to run into his friends and not an enemy. Lancia was still out there after all. He shivered slightly at the thought of fighting the scary looking man. He was scared of Lancia and worried about Fuuta, not to mention Hibari who might or might not be here. That thought made him frown. Surely someone as strong as Hibari wouldn't get defeat. After all Tsuna had seen the way he fought with Mukuro. Which led to another question. Where was Mukuro in this equation? Was he involved somehow or completely innocent?

Something told him Mukuro was more involved than it seemed and he was inclined to believe it. After all Mukuro had always given off a dark aura, but at the same time Tsuna didn't like thinking badly of others.

He stopped and shook his head as if to clear his thoughts. "I'm a mess! I need to focus on getting back to my friends, not worrying over random things!"

Taking a deep breathe he started forward again in a jog this time. His heart seemed to freeze in his chest for a moment and he gasp for air. Worry clouded his mind. Something was wrong. Something was very wrong. He heard some banging up ahead and pushed himself to run faster hoping his friends were alright. He reached the end of the trees and came upon a scene he wished wasn't real.

Yamamoto was beaten and bloodied against a tree with Kyoko frantically trying to heal him. Gokudera was collapsed on the ground and Haru stood between them her mist flame glowing faintly as she faced Lancia who was swing his weapon menacingly.

His mouth opened without his permission and the first words that came to mind were shouted out.

"What are you doing?! Stop!"

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><p><strong>Okay, this is the last of the rapid fire updates. I'm still working on the last two chapters. The reason their taking so long is 'cause of the fighting, mukuro being difficult and Haru's pov giving me hell. Despite these issues they will be posted today even if its later in the eveningnight time. **


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: Is is actually necessary to post these every chapter? I might have to go back and check the rule book thingy.**

**Edit: It's nearly midnight so it looks like I won't be able to post it today, but I'll continue to work on it for another hour or so and see it I'm ready to post it. If not then we'll try evening-ish time tomorrow. I'm really sorry about this, but since its the final fight I want to be happy with it. **

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><p>He flinched slightly as all eyes turned to him before straightening up hoping he looked more confident than he felt. Fighting had stopped for the moment so he tried to make his way down the slope to his friend's. He slipped a few times, but didn't fall. As he made his way to Haru's side he glanced over everyone. Gokudera seemed to be struggling to get up his face twisted in pain. Yamamoto was unconscious with Kyoko hovering over him her eyes narrowed in concentration as she guided her sun flames to his injuries. Reborn was observing everything from a distance.<p>

Haru didn't even glance at him when he join her. She was focus on their enemy, Lancia, who had been waiting patiently for Tsuna to walking over.

"Give up. You all will fall before my attacks."

Tsuna frowned at the man in confusion. His gut clenched painfully. Something was wrong here.

"Sorry, I can't do that." He replied softly.

"Then you will die."

Tsuna didn't have time to dwell on the emotion in his voice as his weapon came barreling toward them. They jumped out of the way though Tsuna stumbled at bit trying to keep from falling. Tsuna glanced over at the destruction the wrecking ball left with a winced before diving to the ground to avoid the next attack. He frown and glance over at Yamamoto.

Lancia hit him head on, but seemed to be avoided hitting Haru and him. He rolled to the side and jumped to his feet. He knew he wasn't very fast so one of those attacks should have hit him. He frowned watching Haru rush in for an attack. She was kicked away landing harshly on her back. She was on her feet again immediately gritting her teeth in pain.

Tsuna looked at Lancia again. He saw it.

There was a brief moment when Lancia almost brought him weapon around to hit Haru directly. If he had done that at the distance Haru was at she would have died. He didn't though. He changed his attack and kicked her instead.

His hands balled into fists. He didn't like this. This was wrong.

He didn't want to fight this man, but he could just stand around either. So when Haru went in for another attack he ran forward too. He wasn't sure what he planned on doing, but he leaped at Lancia just as Haru aimed at kick at his knees.

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><p>Reborn watched as Dame-Tsuna and Haru were thrown into each other. He shielded his eyes with his fedora. This whole situation was not the best for the boy.<p>

Reborn had realized who the true enemy was after encountering the first opponent while they were still in the city. All the opponents so far had traces of Mukuro's mist flames, but Lancia seemed to reek of them. Timoteo had told Reborn his suspicions regarding the youth, but this was solid proof. While watching each fight he felt the boys' presence behind each of their opponents making him deduced that it was some form of possession. Viper dabbled in the area in the past, but didn't get very far with it. Mukuro's ability was undoubtedly a result of the experimentation done on him and the other two boys.

However, this knowledge only irritated him further. For all his faults Dame-Tsuna did have a good portion of the Primo's Hype Intuition. He was struggling now because he knew Lancia was innocent. He had seen this occur in Bianca's attack. Tsuna was frightened later, but at the time he instinctively knew he wasn't in danger and therefore didn't react or even attempt to run like he did when he was attack by the Millefiore member in his original dimension. He knew Tsuna would figure it out eventually, but watching him fight so halfheartedly was annoying.

His hand fingered his gun. Dame-Tsuna was building up some regret over his failure to defend his friends. Part of him wanted to test out the Dying Will Bullet. It would probably help him fully realize Lancia's problem and would entertain Reborn. After all it's been awhile since he humiliated someone. Unfortunately they were tricky bullets to use. The regret had to be strong enough or the person shot would die. This made him hesitate. He would wait and see allowing Tsuna time to either let go or build up his regret.

He watched as the Kyoko girl join the fight after getting Yamamoto stable. Leon circled his hat in agitation so he patted his partner to calm him down. Dame-Tsuna was starting to realize what was going on the battle would end soon.

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><p>Tsuna stumbled back to his feet after he was knocked against Haru and grimaced. Haru had already go in for another attack and was kicked away again. Tsuna steadied her this time and she shot him a grateful look.<p>

"He's just playing with us!" She growled.

"You are children with little experience. I will destroy you." Lancia replied.

Tsuna shook his head. That was wrong.

Kyoko came rushing over not a moment later managing to clip the man on the chin with her flame infused fists. He tossed her aside like a rag doll and swung his weapon towards him for good measure. She was hit and knocked to the ground several feet away. As she recovered Haru lunged forward with a few more kicks coupled with a jab to the throat. Lancia blocked all of them with ease.

He just stood there. This was so wrong.

Gokudera's dynamite was thrown into the mix. Tsuna glanced over at his fallen friend. He didn't seem to be able to get up or move much due to the pain, but he was trying his best to help out. Lancia simply jumped away using the explosion to his advantage as he leaped over Kyoko's head and attack her from behind. She was knocked in a tree making Tsuna wince. He looked at Yamamoto. He was unconscious, but not dead. Lancia didn't even try to attack Gokudera even after he threw the dynamite. Tsuna, Haru and Kyoko were only roughed up a bit...

"This is wrong…" He whispered.

He watched as Lancia threw his next attack at him. He vaguely here Kyoko and Haru shout. Telling him to move.

He didn't. He just watched as Lancias' eye's close.

Ah.

Tsuna felt his ring heat up on his finger warming his gloves as well. He leaped forward and hit him, just like Onii-san had taught him. Lancia wheezed slightly before twisting and kicking Tsuna away.

Tsuna back off watching silently as the man growled at him. He wasn't afraid anymore even though could barely fight back as the man tossed aside his weapon and attacked him directly. He wasn't fast enough to dodge as punched and kicks rain down on him. He choked as he was slammed into the ground. He looked up at Lancia gasping for breath.

"Stop it. You don't want this."

Lancia faced twisted. "You are wrong. I will destroy all of my enemies."

'_Then why did you beg us to give up?!' _Tsuna pushed himself up on his elbows.

Lancia grabbed his weapon again and had knocked both Kyoko and Haru away with one blow.

'_Why do you look away when you strike?!'_

He turned to Tsuna and raised it to strike.

'_Why are your eyes so sad?!'_

As Tsuna watched as the wrecking ball came barreling toward him he felt his ring heat up to an almost unbearable degree. It spread from his figure through his right glove and then to the left one. He leaped forward again, faster than before and struck.

For a moment everything was silent. Nobody moved. Then Lancia coughed and fell to his knees Tsuna's fist had stuck true once again, but this time with more force than Lancia could shrug off.

Tsuna knelt in front of him and looked him in the eye. His hands on the other man's shoulders.

"That's enough, you don't have to fight anymore."

He didn't know why he was so calm, but he didn't question it. Lancia looked at him silently for a moment his eyes desperate. Tsuna let him think it over. Finally Lancia seem to find what he wanted in Tsuna eyes and nodded. His head bowed in defeat as he let go of the chain.

"You saw through me."

Tsuna smiled gently and pulled away, understanding that the other man was in pain.

"So did we win?" Haru's confused voice rang through the air. She was standing again clutching her side.

"I will not oppose you any longer." Lancia smiled tiredly. "I can see why Mukuro wants to kill you."

Tsuna sighed. He had realized this, but it was still painful to hear out loud. He remained silent as his friends voiced their disbelief.

"Lancia can you please tell us what you know?" He asked softly.

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><p>Mukuro sat back shocked at the sudden turn of events. He had been watching through Lancia's eyes since the beginning of the fight. He was disappointed Tsunayoshi lackadaisical fighting attempts. The boy didn't seem put any effort into the fight until…<p>

There was a flash of orange and suddenly those large eyes were looking at him through his hosts eyes. They were calm and perceptive, but worst of all they were understanding…

"_That's enough, you don't have to fight anymore."_

Mukuro kicked the chair closest to him startling Chikusa. His hands curled into fists as he snapped at the boy to go dispose of Lancia. There was no point in controlling the man anymore. He had no doubt the man would kill himself if he tried to possess him again. There was also no doubt the man would spill what he knew. Especially in the face of those eyes.

Those disgusting, shrewd, gentle eyes.

"_That's enough, you don't have to fight anymore."_

What did he know?! Tsunayoshi knew nothing of the dark and filthy depths of the human race. He didn't know how ugly human beings could be. He didn't know ugly the Vongola was. He couldn't possibly understand. He was too naïve. Too inexperience and nauseatingly innocent. He was useless and pathetic. He could never understand Mukuro's reasoning. He could never understand Mukuro's hatred.

"_That's enough, you don't have to fight anymore."_

Mukuro turned sharply and marched out of the room. He had already set up a room for their battle. He was prepared. Soon the Vongola Heir would be under his control and the Vongola would fall.

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><p>He didn't quite go into Hyper Will Dying Mode Reborn noticed. But he did activate his flames in order to propel him forward and there was a subtle orange tint to his eyes. Reborn also noticed Mukuro's flame waver when Tsuna talked Lancia down. He wondered if the boy's word reach him. Reborn wouldn't be surprised. People with Sky flames were hard to resist. They drew others to them, sometimes without even realizing it, like Tsuna. Dino was the same way.<p>

He remained silent as everyone started to calm down from their fighting high and settle down to listen to their former opponent.

Reborn watched the multitude of expressions crossing Dame-Tsuna face as Lancia finished his story. He had already figured out what was going on, but Lancia filled in the missing pieces making everything clear. However, it seemed as those even Lancia didn't know of Mukuro's past, but Reborn did. Not only that, but Tsuna seemed to be slowing piecing it together. Subconsciously at the very least.

There was no doubt that he had a strong intuition. Most likely the strongest in a long time, though one could never be sure. The Vongola Leaders keep their secrets close to their chest. However, Dame-Tsuna didn't even realize it and often let his own emotion override the warnings he received. Reborn would have to fix that.

He sensed the inevitable attack, but like the previous battles did nothing to prevent it. This battle was reaching its end. He glanced up at the clear sky as everyone rushed around in light of Chikusa's attack.

The worst was yet to come.

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><p>Tsuna sighed heavily as they trudged toward the main building once again. They were down two and still a bit roughed up form the last fight, but it wasn't like they had a choice. He glanced back even though he knew the rest of the group was out of sight. Yamamoto was still unconscious and Lancia was now suffering from the same poison Gokudera had running through him courtesy of Chikusa.<p>

Kyoko had reluctantly offered to stay behind and watch over them. Reborn assured him they'd be fine, but he was still worried.

He glanced at his companions and held back another sigh. Haru looked positively livid. He was sure it had something to do with Lancia's story. She had tensed up when he said he was possessed. Kyoko had pulled her aside to before they left, but whatever she said didn't seem to calm the brunette down in the slightest.

Gokudera on the other hand still looked to in pain judging by the pinched expression on his face. Tsuna wished he could've convinced him to stay with the others, but the silverette would hear none of it. So, despite Tsuna's protests Kyoko gave him another sun pill and he joined them. Tsuna knew he had been injured, but he didn't know there was poison involved until Kyoko mentioned it when he asked how Lancia was doing. Her eyes had immediately widened and darted to Gokudera alerting him that they had kept this fact from him. Even though Gokudera assure him that he just needed some time Tsuna was worried he'd collapse again and be hurt even worse.

Reborn of course was being Reborn, but he had pulled him aside before they started walking and let him know in no uncertain terms that he would not be interfering with his fight with Mukuro.

Tsuna wasn't sure what to think. His stomach was knotted up with anxiety and fear. It had been like that was since Lancia shared his story about Mukuro, but it became worse after Reborn's words. He knew that boy was scary, but it was still a shock to hear that he controlled Lancia into killing off his own organization.

He didn't stop there either. He just kept killing and kept making Lancia do his bidding. The poor man was obviously traumatized. His eyes were heartbreaking when he told them about his organization and how he considered them a family.

What would compel a person to do that sort-of thing?

He looked up at the entrance of the building a frown marring his face. He didn't know why Mukuro was doing this, but was wrong and he needed to be stopped before he hurt anymore people.

Tsuna just hoped he was strong enough to stop him.

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><p><strong>For such a short chapter this sure did have give me trouble. I'm still not sure I like it, despite my continuous tweaking, but I'm going to post it 'cause this getting ridiculous. Ch.19 is the same way. Honestly I'm not sure if I can post it tonight. I will try my hardest. I've had this deadline for ages now, but gosh darn is that chapter being a bugger and a half. <strong>

**Anyway let's move onto to nicer things, like reviews. Those are so much better than unruly chapters.**

**Reviews~**

**_crimsonarrows~_ Thank you so much for the reviews! Haha that must have been a surprise. Crossing my fingers on the Mukuro fight.**

**_(Ch.4) Kyogre~_ I already answered your question in a pm, but thanks again for the review!**

**_Animeseris~_ Thanks for the review! Yup the final fight is coming up! XD**


	19. Chapter 19

**It's finally here...**

**Disclaimer: I don't own KHR. Some dialogue from the anime was used. (Pieces of Mukuro's six path explanation and Tsuna cool moment in episode 25)**

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><p>Gokudera was starting to feel slightly normal after taking the sun pill and hoped it last through-out the next fight. He felt woefully pathetic in the last battle. Unable to even stand much less fight with the rest. He managed to toss some dynamite in the fray, but that movement nearly sent him into unconsciousness.<p>

As they entered the building Gokudera was on high alert. He was sick of being caught by surprise by these people. They wandered around the dilapidated building hesitantly. They saw no one through-out the whole main floor. It became obvious that they were being led by their noses when every stairway they came across was destroyed. They finally found a ladder to the second floor in a random room near the back.

The only warning they had was a slightly whistle, but Gokudera recognized the sound of the yo-yo's and tossed a wave of dynamite to protect everyone.

He heard Tsuna scream and Haru gasped as Chikusa came into view. Gokudera narrow his eyes at the bastard.

"Tsuna-sama please continue forward. I'll catch up when I beat this guy."

Tsuna-sama looked like he was going to argue, but Haru and Reborn tugged him toward the ladder. Chikusa frowned, but didn't move.

"Please, Tsuna-sama. Let me do this."

Tsuna stared at him searchingly for a moment before nodding reluctantly. Gokudera grinned at him before turning back to his opponent.

Gokudera didn't hesitate before he struck rushing the other boy while tossing dynamite. He dodged around him and threw more dynamite behind him to give him more time to get out of the yoyo's reach. He dashed out of the room leaving dynamite in his wake. He didn't have to wait long for the sound of pursuit. He turned the corner just as a spray of needle nearly hit him in the back.

This time he wouldn't lose.

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><p>Haru didn't like this situation one bit. She came here to support her friends, but found herself involved in something much more complicated than she had first thought. She glanced at the boy walking beside her. He was a nervous wreck. He continuously looking back as if he was hoping to spot his friend safe and sound instead of fight the person who hurt him so bad before.<p>

It would have been sweet if the situation wasn't so dire.

She wondered how someone like Tsuna became the Vongola Heir. She supposed his flames must have had a factor in it. Sky flames were very rare after all.

She smiled faintly as he looked back again. He looked nothing like the person who defeated Lancia. She thought he was a goner when the man turned to attack him, but Tsuna seemed to change in those few minutes. He was beaten to the ground, but he had this look in his eyes. Like he finally understood something. She hadn't been expecting that out of the boy even after learning he was the Vongola Heir.

She looked down at her hands. She had done well with Kyoko against M.M., but they were completely outclassed by Lancia. Her ring gleamed softly in the dim light of the hallway.

She gritted her teeth remembering Lancia's situation.

Possession.

How could anyone do that to another person?

That was a huge taboo among mist flame users and one she never thought she'd ever have to face.

Not only that, but Mukuro Rokudo was behind the whole thing.

She remembered seeing him in action for the first time. She was enamored that someone barely older than her already had such control over his flames. The entire illusionist department in the infirmary was awed when he showed up at the Vongola. They begged him to join, but he turned them down with that annoying smirk of his. He was the reason she took up martial arts. Very few mist users were able to compete physically, but Mukuro had no trouble fighting with that Hibari character without using his flames.

He was so talented, why would he do this? Why would he delve into such awful practices? Not only that, but kidnapping a child just to get what he wanted and allying with such horrible criminals.

Haru closed her eyes trying to push the anger away.

Her teacher had taught her to keep calm. Out of all of the flames mist flame was the most difficult to use especially in battle. It required a large amount of concentration in order to create and destroy illusions. She most likely wouldn't be able to compete with Mukuro in the creation of illusions, in fact she was sure he's would be seen through immediately, but she could still try and provide Tsuna back up by breaking illusions.

She nodded to herself her hands curling into fists. Yes, that's what she'd do.

While she had been lost in her mussing Tsuna had walked a head. He was staring at the double doors in front of him intently.

"This is it."

Haru nodded not questioning how he knew that. They looked at each other nervously. Tsuna put a trembling hand on the doors and pushed them open.

They hesitant only for a moment before entering the dark room. The doors slammed close behind them with an ominous thump. The room was dark and chilly with deep menacing shadows.

"Kufufufu. Why hello little mouse. Or should I call you the Vongola Heir now?"

Haru shuddered at the amount of malice in his voice. She spotted him sitting on a wing back chair on the stage several feet in front of them. Fuuta stood by his side, eyes blank. Haru narrowed her eyes and shifted into a fighting stance.

"Fuuta!"

She glanced at Tsuna. He was staring at the younger boy worriedly. Haru watched with trepidation when the boy's eyes suddenly gain life and he rushed toward the brunette.

"Tsuna-nii!"

All the while Mukuro smirked from his sitting position. Tsuna knelt down and held his arms out to the child relief obvious in his eyes. She saw Tsuna tense the moment before Fuuta pulled out the tip of Mukuro's trident and tried to stab his with it. She was next to him in a moment holding his wrist in a tight grip. Possessed or not he was still a child and she was physically stronger than him.

"No you didn't! Mukuro!"

She ignored Tsuna cry of outrage and force Fuuta to drop the weapon before pulling him into a hug her eyes watering. Swallowing her sadness she pressed her poison dart into his thin shoulder.

"I'm so sorry." She whispered as he struggled increased before starting to get sluggish. Once he was completely paralyzed she knock him out with a quick blow to the back of the neck.

She wasn't sure if Mukuro could use and unconscious body. She had to make sure they weren't put into a position where they'd have to defend themselves from the possessed child while fending off Mukuro. She knew neither her nor Tsuna could ever hurt the boy which would assure their defeat.

When this was all over the child could get some help from the illusion department in the infirmary. Haru was sure there'd be damage from being possessed. She only hoped whatever danger there was could be fixed. Innocent children didn't deserve to suffer like this.

She cradled him a moment longer before setting him down gently and turned her glare on Mukuro.

He wasn't smirking anymore. In fact, much to Haru's glee, he seemed put out. He regained his superior attitude a moment later and smiled cruelly.

"Well that was anticlimactic. I was hoping for a bit more heart break."

"Mukuro…"

The other boy ignored the warning in Tsuna's tone and continued. "Oh well, I suppose. We'll just have to start our fight immediately."

He stood with one fluid movement making Tsuna and Haru take a weary stepped back. He simply chuckled as if amused by their antics twirling his trident lazily. Haru noticed he had somehow managed to get the tip back. She glanced at her feet subtly. The piece Fuuta had dropped was gone.

In the fleeting moment Haru was distracted Mukuro struck. His trident hit the floor with a resounding crack and suddenly they were surrounded by flames. This wasn't real.

She shuddered as sweat started to pore down her forehead. The flames felt so real. He skin was uncomfortably hot. She could hear Tsuna freaking out beside her. He stumbled away from the flames and ran into her. She had to shift them both away from a sudden spinning vortex of fire. They landed heavily on the floor inches away from the flames that encircled them.

_This isn't real!_

She gritted her teeth allowing Tsuna to roll them away from the next attack by the vortex.

_This is an illusion! You are a mist user! You can break this! _

But… she glanced frantically at the flames around them as they kept dodging while Mukuro cackled in the background.

Then she say it.

Reborn stood silently in the flames. He hadn't moved from the beginning. By all rights the flames should have burn him to a crisp.

The flames didn't affect him.

_They aren't real._

Haru straitened. Tsuna tried to tug her away, but she refused to move even while the vortex engulfed her. For a moment she felt herself being burn alive, but she rejected the illusion with all of her might.

He ring ignited from her effort and the flames disappeared.

She was left panting in the middle of the room. She glared defiantly up at Mukuro. He only smirked his red eyes gleaming in the dim room. She wondered vaguely why she hadn't noticed that before now, but her thoughts were cut off when he tapped his trident again and the ground crumbled beneath them.

As she and Tsuna fell into darkness she closed her eyes and focused on the illusion. She felt it hovering in the air around her and pushed it away. Once it broke she found herself lying on the ground. She rolled to her feet her hands trembling form the exertion of two strong illusions back to back.

Mukuro was still standing there with than insurable smirk on his face.

"Haru!"

She spun around quickly. Or at least she tried too. She looked down in horror only to find vines curling around her legs. Keeping her in place. She turn her head to find Tsuna in the same position.

She struggled fruitlessly. She broke the illusion didn't she?! She didn't feel another one being cast!

D-did he cast a double layered illusion? She heard the older student complain about them. But that was extremely advanced! It took years to master! Haru continued to struggle even as the vines pinned her hands to her side.

No!

It couldn't end like this!

It was an illusion!

She could break it!

"Kufufu your skills are average at best. Come back when you aren't so pathetic. I have more important people to deal with than a useless girl."

Her eyes widened in shock.

She heard Tsuna scream in the background, but she couldn't register anything other than the abrupt pain in her stomach as Mukuro stabbed her. She could hear herself scream as her nerves seemed to catch fire. She had never been in this much pain before.

But that wasn't the end of it.

No, Haru recoiled utter horror as she felt Mukuro's flames settle around her mind trapping her.

Possessing her.

It was worse than the stab wound.

She wanted to scream again. This time in anger.

But she couldn't. Mukuro wouldn't allow her too.

"Haru! Haru! Are you okay?!"

She watched rather than felt Tsuna's armed wrapped around her. His worried face was inches from hers. Everything was distant now. She had no control over her actions.

Her mouth opened without her permission as she told him she was fine and to focus on their enemy.

It was horrifying.

* * *

><p>Gokudera tore through the hallways leaving behind traps to keep Chikusa occupied as his mind spun through the pros and cons of different plans. He had the upper hand this time. The other boy needed space to use his weapon to its full potential, but his dynamite was perfect for close quarter fighting. He dropped some more dynamite on the ground and kicked some rubble over it.<p>

He rolled away as Chikusa came charging around the corner and threw some more to distract him. His opponent went for the obvious target making Gokudera smirk. The bombs at his feet exploded sending his body flying into a wall.

Unfortunately that wasn't enough to down the bastard.

He gritted his teeth in frustration as the other boy walked out of the smoke. It was almost inhuman the way he could move forward with the amount of burns and scrapes littering his body. He didn't even act like he was in pain. He just trudged forward.

Gokudera a slammed himself into a window in order to avoid another wave of needles. He tossed some smoke bombs and dove around another corner. He needed to pin the other boy somehow, so he wouldn't keep getting back up. There was plenty of object he could use, but he was worried that if he brought down any walls it my effect the stability of the building. It was already in bad shape.

If he was alone he'd just detonate the dynamite and hopefully escape through a window. If the building collapse than that was just a bonus that would trap his enemy further. However, Tsuna-sama and that Haru girl were on the floor above him. He didn't want to risk their lives in order to win this battle.

He'd find another way.

His hands curled into fists as the pain started to rear its ugly head again. It appear the sun pill was reaching its limit. He need to end this quickly before he collapsed again. He dove to the floor as Chikusa caught up with him.

He was so focused on the glasses wearing freak he barely managed to dodge as Ken came bursting through the window to his left. He raised his arm to shield his eyes from the flying shards of glass.

"Crap." He muttered.

This wasn't good.

"What took you so long, Ken?"

Ken scoffed obviously annoyed. "That damn sword idiot's rain flame interfered with my opossum channel keeping me unconscious for longer than I should have been."

Gokudera back away slowly.

"Oi! Where do you think your goin', punk!?"

Gokudera was thrown back against a wall as the blond struck with his animalistic speed and strength. He pain was growing unbearable. Gokudera glared at the two with all his mind as his mind flicker through his limited options. When Ken raised his clawed hand to finish him off he was nearly squired by a flying tonfa.

Gokudera eyed the weapon with trepidation. He remembered now that Hibari was supposed to have disappeared after he decided in to go after the culprits. He turned his gaze to where the tonfa had been thrown from and blinked in surprise.

Kyoko stood by a bloodied Hibari who for some unexplainable reason had one of Bird's birds on is head.

"What the hell!? I thought you couldn't move!" Ken pointed at Hibari accusingly. The glare he received was terrifying making even Gokudera flinch.

"I forgot to ask earlier because you attacked so suddenly, but which one of you were the one to hurt my brother?" Kyoko's soft voice and gentle smile was eerie coupled with the steel glint in her eyes.

"Brother? What brother?" Ken growled after visibly turning away from Hibari's gaze.

"Sasagawa Ryohei." Kyoko answered. "He's about your height with short white hair and grey eyes. He often wrapped his hands with bandages and shouts 'extreme' over everything."

Ken looked thoughtful for a minute before bursting out laughing. "Oh that freak?! Haha he was your brother? He was so pathetic! I beat him up good. He didn't even expect it."

Gokudera supposed it was irony that the blond idiot didn't even expect the sudden right hook delivered by the normally reserved girl. With the amount of sun flames that flared at Ken's poor choice in words it was no shock to him that Ken collapsed unconscious with a thump while blood poured out of his broken nose.

"Ken!"

Gokudera glanced at his original opponent. So he did have emotion after all.

"I will bite you to death."

Gokudera sighed and slide down to a sitting position. He never thought he'd be so grateful to hear those words. He supposed Hibari was someone that could be relied on. Depending on the situation.

"Gokudera-san! Are you alright?" Kyoko was leaning over him worriedly. "The pill is wearing off isn't it? I'm sorry. I'm not sure if I can give you another. Giving you the second one so soon after the first was pushing it don't think…"

He grinned faintly at her making her stop short in surprise.

"I'm fine, just give me a few minutes." He closed his eyes. "And enough with the 'san' bull. Just call me Gokudera."

He supposed she earned that right.

* * *

><p>Tsuna felt useless as he watched the blood seep out of Haru's wound. She gave him a strained smile and assure him she'd be alright, but he didn't really believe her. The wound was ugly and deep. He grimaced, but pulled away at her insistence. He glance at his tutor who nodded to him. He sighed in relief. Reborn would keep her from bleeding out.<p>

He turned to Mukuro who was watching across the room with a smirk. He twirled his bloody trident slowing making Tsuna bristle. His ring warmed up considerably with his anger. He took a deep breath.

"Mukuro...why are you doing this?"

Tsuna watched silently as Mukuro smirk widened clearing waiting for that question.

"Kufufu. Why don't you ask your little tutor?"

"Huh?!"

Tsuna's eyes widened as he looked towards Reborn standing to his left. The baby wasn't looking at him

"Go ahead Mr. Sun Arcobaleno why don't you tell your pupil what you and the Vongola Ninth dug up on me?"

Tsuna frowned as Reborn continued to look away from him. Finally the baby opened his mouth and answered.

"Mukuro Rokudo, Ken Joshima and Chikusa Kakimoto were all victims of horrible experimentation by the Estraneo organization. An organization that was previously one of the Vongola's allies until it was destroyed by them."

Tsuna couldn't breathe. Why…?

Mukuro's laugh sent a shiver down Tsuna spine.

"Ah, yes it's just too awful to think about isn't it? Its gets worse thought. When the Vongola found out about the experiments they just slapped them on the wrist. They didn't even bother to see if they continued it in secret until months later."

"The Vongola cut all ties with the Estraneo and told them in no uncertain terms to stop the experimentation."

Mukuro smirked at reborn response. "Like I said a slap on the wrist."

"But…"

"How does it feel Tsunayoshi, hmm? To be on the same side, to fight the same battle with people willing to experiment on innocent little children?" His voice was dripping with malice and something else…

"If that's not enough for you should I bring out the Vongola considerable history in immoral acts? Perhaps I should first point out the existence of a Vongola owned assassin group with a copious amount of blood on their hands, not just from the Millefiore."

Mukuro stopped as Tsuna looked down at his shoes. His fist clinched into fist. They were supposed to be the good guys here, right?

"So, you're doing all of this for revenge."

Mukuro's smirked. "I will rid this universe of the Vongola and every other organizations like it. Such hypocritical people don't deserve to call themselves heroes."

"What about the Millefiore? If they win chaos will spread across the universe."

"Kufufufu You think I care about that? Let the Millefiore win! Let chaos reign! I couldn't care less about the universe."

Tsuna swallowed heavily. Things had gotten strange. He glanced at Reborn. He didn't like the fact that he was keeping secrets like that. Reborn met his look head on. There was a promise of a talk later in those dark eyes. He nodded.

He took a deep breath and looked at Mukuro who was now frowning at him.

"I'm sorry, but I can't let you do this."

Mukuro scowled. "That's not up to you."

His eye changed startling Tsuna. When did he have a red eye? And when did it have numbers in it?!

He couldn't dwell on it for long, because Mukuro had suddenly rushed past him. He blinked in surprise before the pain kicked in.

"What?!" He looked down at all of the gashes he suddenly acquired.

"Kufufufu. The Asura Path increases my combat capabilities."

Tsuna looked at the mist flame surround the other boys left eye for a moment in confusion.

"You look so confused, dear little Vongola Heir. I told you didn't I? I suffered under the care of the Estraneo." He gesture to his eye a sick grin on his face. "This is the gift they left me."

"The six realms of Buddhist cosmetology." Reborn explained though Tsuna didn't understand what he was talking about so it didn't help.

"Kufufu. You catch on quick Arcobaleno. Yes, I have the memories of the six paths thanks to the Estraneo."

Tsuna stood there uncertainly. Was he supposed to know what that meant? Luckily Reborn explained for him.

"It goes like this; when people die they are reborn as a demon, a hungry ghost, a beast, an asura, a human or a deva."

Tsuna shivered. Could that really be true?

"Kufufu. You sure are helpful. Are you here to watch or protect the little mouse Arcobaleno?"

"This is Dame-Tsuna trial. I am merely here to observe."

Mukuro's smirk widened. "Listen to that Tsunayoshi. The Vongola is willing to let you die after less than a month of training you just for some test to see if you're strong enough."

Tsuna winced.

"Dame-Tsuna will not die here. He was trained by me."

"Kufufu we'll see about that. You've already seen the first path, so let's move on shall we?"

Before Tsuna could react he was surrounded by snakes of all colors and sizes.

"Hiiieee! Another illusion?!" He jumped away, but they followed him hissing angrily.

"The Path of the Beasts."

Tsuna wasn't sure what to do. His ring was heating up again and he could feel his flames burning just out of reach.

"Tsuna duck!" Kyoko's voice cut through his panic.

He saw the dynamite coming and rolled away quickly. He heard the clang of weapons and say Mukuro dodging an attack from Hibari.

"Tsuna-sama! Are you alright?!"

He turned sharping to his friend eyes wide. "Gokudera?"

The silverette just grinned. "I told you I'd come back once I finished up with that other guy. I also brought reinforcements."

Kyoko sent a smile his way as she knelt by Haru still kneeling on the ground. Hope blossomed in his chest making Tsuna smile. Perhaps everything will turn out well after all.

"Kufu Chikusa is falling down on his job."

"Ha. Those two henchmen of yours have been thoroughly beaten and are now taking a nap." Gokudera grinned as he held up more dynamite. "Care to join them?"

He was immediately clocked in the forehead by Hibari's tonfa.

"Gokudera!"

"Stand aside, herbivore, this prey is mine."

Tsuna glanced incredulously at Hibari. Of course at a time like this he had to be difficult.

"Kufufu. I've already broken most of the bone it your body. That woman over couldn't have heal all of that damage. She's already at her limit as it is."

Tsuna looked over at Kyoko as the two rivals duke it out once more. She did look a bit pale and the flame she was using to help Haru was flickering. Mukuro's laugh brought him back to the battle. Hibari was panting hard as more blood seeped through his already stained shirt. Tsuna took a step forward.

"Hibari-san!"

"He's a monster that for sure, but he's already reached his limit."

Tsuna frowned, but before he could say anything Hibari had struck sending Mukuro flying back. He gasped in shock. Nobody moved for a few seconds until Hibari collapsed again.

"Take that as a lesson Dame-Tsuna. Never underestimate your enemy."

Kyoko wrung her hands in distress. "He wouldn't let me heal much. I told him he should push it, but…"

Tsuna shook his head looking down at the injured boy. That was truly amazing. He turned back to Mukuro. Despite Hibari's valiant attempt he knew it was far from over. Mukuro wasn't just going to roll over and give up.

"Kufufu You saw through that quickly didn't you Tsunayoshi. You seem to be getting better at that sort of thing." Mukuro was sitting up again, this time holding a gun.

Gokudera looked just about ready to strike when Mukuro turned the gun on himself.

"Arrivederci."

What…

What?!

* * *

><p>Kyoko looked away when Mukuro pulled the trigger. Her hands were shaking, but that could have been from the strain of using her flame so much today. She felt sick.<p>

Why would he do that?

After all that had happened?

Haru's hand snaked around her wrist and she turned to smile at her friend.

"Kyoko look out!"

Tsuna was by her in a second pulling her away from Haru's sudden attack with the tip of Mukuro's trident. Luckily Tsuna was just in time and she only got a small scratch on her hand.

Why did Haru do that?

Unless…

Her eyes widened in horror.

Did Mukuro possess her?

_Kufufufufu_

* * *

><p>Tsuna shivered watching Haru silently. For some reason he could feel Mukuro's presence hanging off of her.<p>

When did he possess her?

Was it when he shot himself?

Then why didn't he possess him?

"Kufufufu Did you think I was gone for good? I bet you were relieved." Haru smirked, her left eye turning the same red as Mukuro's. "Unfortunately for you I still have unfinished business."

He pulled Kyoko further away not sure what to think.

"So this is what the Estraneo were trying to achieve. A complete possession has never been done before despite the many attempts at it." Reborn's voice started Tsuna. He looked toward the baby in confusion. "Lancia called it possession, but what we've seen so far with Lancia and Fuuta was more mind-control based. That has been achieve by the more sadistic mist users in the past. This, however, is different."

Tsuna turned to Haru, or…Mukuro, once again with wide eyes. She laughed.

"Are you praising me Reborn? I feel so honored."

Reborn ignored him. "The possession bullet. To think the Estraneo actually created one after so many years of trying. Tsuna the bullet he shot himself with amplified his power and gave him the ability to fully possess your friends."

"For someone here to simply observe you sure are talkative."

Tsuna felt a shiver go down his spine. He glanced at Kyoko, who stood right beside him looking down her eyes shielded by her hair.

This feeling…

No it couldn't be…

Mukuro!

"Tsuna-sama!"

Gokudera yanked him away from the honey haired girl as she nearly punched him. When she looked up her left eye was red.

"Kufufu. That's impressive little mouse. You realized I possessed his girl before I even revealed myself."

"No...how is this…w-why…?" He glanced at Haru, who was still standing there smirking.

"Tsuna-sama, the trident." Gokudera whispered in his ear. "Wasn't Haru stabbed with it? And just now Kyoko receive a scratch from it."

Kyoko smiled sweetly at them. "Good job."

"…but that won't help you at all." Haru finished.

Tsuna and Gokudera jumped away again as they attacked. He could see Gokudera hesitating. He could use his bombs to fight them, but that might really hurt them. Tsuna bit his lip. This situation wasn't good.

It wasn't good at all.

* * *

><p>Gokudera weaved around with Tsuna-sama dodging the girls attack, but otherwise not engaging them in battle.<p>

He didn't know what to do.

He could take them out with a few well-placed explosions, but he was reluctant to do so. Haru's wound had opened up again and was bleeding sluggishly, while Kyoko was trembling with exhaustion. Despite that Mukuro pushed them forward attacking them over and over while taunting them.

He rolled away from an attack from behind.

He scowled as he caught sight of Chikusa and Ken. His scowl only deepened when he noticed they were possessed as well.

To do that to your own comrades. He shook his head. That was sick.

He shifted away from the cool blade of the trident when Haru snuck up behind him. His eyes widened as he felt the small cut bloom on his cheek. It was so small, but…

Haru smirked. "Got you."

"Gokudera!"

* * *

><p>"Stop this Mukuro!"<p>

Tsuna was so angry his hands were shaking. This was terrible!

Mukuro merely smirked through Gokudera. "Stop this you say? Alright I can do that."

"Huh…?"

Tsuna backed away wearily, but no one attacked. Ken continued where Gokudera left off.

"Give me your body Tsunayoshi Sawada and I'll let your friends go."

"That's…" Tsuna swallowed.

"What is it Vongola Heir? Not willing to give up yourself? I knew you were hypocritical deep down inside."

"N-No…" Tsuna took a step forward eye wide. If that would save his friends. "I…"

"Dame-Tsuna!" Reborn smacked him hard in the back of the head. "As soon as he has control of you he'll wreak havoc on the Vongola."

"But…my friends."

"Are less important than you."

"Kufufufu Give up Vongola and your friends will be saved." Chikusa ran forward only to collapse.

"What?"

Kyoko picked up the trident he dropped with a sigh. "Their body is mine, but sometimes the body is too broken and it collapses."

Haru kicked the still unconscious Hibari. "That's why I didn't even attempt to possess this demon. He's already broken."

_They're toys to him. _

Tsuna's hands curled into fists.

Even if he gave himself up that didn't guarantee their safety if Mukuro thought so little of everyone around him.

Then what could he do?!

He couldn't fight his friends! Not like this!

"Then save them." Tsuna froze. "Isn't that your goal? Your resolve?"

He stared down at the baby. He closed his eyes.

_My resolve? _

"I want to win."

He wanted to save his friends.

"I want to beat Mukuro."

He wanted to stop a person willing to throw his comrades away like nothing.

"I don't want to lose to such a terrible person."

He knew Mukuro had been hurt. There was a lingering pain in his eyes. But that didn't excuse what he was doing or what he did.

It was wrong.

His flames were reacting to his resolve he realize belatedly. He could feel them swirl with him. It was almost frightening at first, but then a wave of calmness hit him.

He knew what to do.

He opened his eyes slowing and turned to look at his friends.

"His eyes…that flame." Gokudera's face twisted in confusion then glee. "Oh my, well it seen I'm not the only one with an impossible power."

Haru grinned nastily. "Hyper Dying Will Mode or not, I still have the upper hand!"

Tsuna didn't know what he was talking about, but he didn't question it.

Kyoko lunched forward, but Tsuna didn't dodge. Her sun flames were all but extinguished, making it easier for him to accept her punch and twist slightly to absorb the blow while not allowing it to do damage to himself. Seeing an opening he taped sharply on the back of her neck to force her unconscious.

"That's….!" Gokudera snarled wordlessly.

He and Haru lunged forward with dynamites and the trident tip. Tsuna dodge the dynamites and used his flames to appear behind them knocking them out as well.

Chikusa and Ken were already severely injured. It didn't take much more than a punch and a kick to send them flying and render them useless to Mukuro.

With all of Mukuro's puppets taken care of he set his friends against the wall as he waited for Mukuro to show himself again.

"Kufufu I will admit that I'm impressed." Mukuro stepped out of the shadows his forehead bloody.

"I had considered HDWM when planning my fight with you, but I assumed you would take the pills or get shot" He glanced at Reborn. "Actually I figured that was the whole reason your tutor was here. To shot you with the special bullet when you needed it."

He grinned widely. "Possessing you will be perfect. With that power I could completely destroy the Vongola and every other organization like it!"

Tsuna frowned. He couldn't allow that.

He wouldn't allow that.

"Kufufufu In light of this sudden turn of events I suppose I can use that one."

Tsuna eyes widened as Mukuro reached up and stabbed his right eye. Mukuro grinned at his surprise though it was strained from the pain he was cause himself. His flames flared fiercely gaining an ugly black taint.

"The Path of Humans. By far the more terrible and corrupt power I have." Mukuro smirk even as the blood streaming from his eye turned black. "It's truly fitting too. Humans are such ugly creatures. It stand to reason this power is just as disgusting."

Tsuna brought his arms up to block the attack, but was still thrown back. He hit a wall hard making it crack and crumble in places. He dove to the floor to avoid the next attack using his flames to speed up his actions.

Tsuna frowned as the exchange more blows.

Mukuro's eyes were so desperate.

He was always pretty good at judging peoples emotions when he focused on them. But now it seemed to be amplified to a terrifying degree.

He groaned as Mukuro slammed the butt of his trident into his abdomen. He kept seeing flashes of a dark room. People with medical masks leaning over his prone form. And the pain. The pain was unbearable.

He could feel Mukuro's reluctance. Images of Ken, Chikusa and Mukuro relaxing for once in their lives out on the Vongola property. Tsuna felt his thrill in fighting Hibari.

He could also feel Mukuro's hatred.

So, twisted and tainted.

It was all consuming and attached to so many memories of pain.

He blocked another attack before maneuvering himself higher in the air to get out of reach. Mukuro's emotions were in such turmoil it was affecting him.

Mukuro's jumped up to follow him engaging Tsuna again in another round of punches and kicks faster than Tsuna thought was possible.

_It true that I want to protect my friends. _

Tsuna somersaulted out of the air sliding to avoid Mukuro's trident.

_But you in pain as well aren't you?_

Mukuro was trying to push him into the tip of the trident. He must had set it up when Tsuna was setting down his unconscious friends.

_You have suffered and you want to make other feel that pain. When you destroyed the Estraneo you were still anger. You were still hurt._

Tsuna used his flames to prevent himself from being skewered from behind and shot forward like a rocket.

_Let me help you._

He knew what to do.

_Let me ease your pain._

His hand covered Mukuro's face his flames flaring brightly, but didn't burn the skin.

It burned away that dark aura instead.

He slammed the larger boy to the floor holding him there until his flames had down their good before removing his hand.

Mukuro stared up at him his eyes wide. He struggled to sit up, but Tsuna pushed him down gently.

"That's enough, you don't have to fight anymore."

He watched as Mukuro finally gave in and closed his eyes. Everything was still for a moment. He stared down at the older boy he was kneeling next too. He peaceful now despite is injuries

"N-No don't kill him!"

Tsuna turned slowly to see both Ken and Chikusa trying to crawl towards him.

"Stop, your injuries are too great. You shouldn't move."

Ken glared at him his eyes watering.

"Don't k-kill him. I-I'll kill you!"

Tsuna frowned and stood up.

"He used you like disposable toys." He said slowly.

"Don't act like you understand." Chikusa muttered

"We don't care! He saved us!" Ken was struggling to stand up.

"I see." Tsuna closed his eyes and let go of his flames. "He's you precious friend isn't he?"

He looked at Mukuro thoughtfully, remembering the images of the three of them enjoying themselves. "I think…despite his actions, he must feel the same way."

He smiled gently at the shocked pair before turning to Reborn.

"Everyone's injuries…?"

Reborn smirked and held up his phone. "The Vongola Medical Team is already here. They just finished taking care of Lancia and Yamamoto and are on their way to us."

Tsuna grinned in relief.

"Thank goodness."

The door burst open and Tsuna looked up hoping it was the medics.

It wasn't.

Tsuna backed away from the bandaged figures his eyes wide in fear. Their very presence frightened him to the core. There chains shot out gripping Ken, Chikusa, and Mukuro around the neck and they starting dragging the three away without a word.

"No!" Tsuna jumped in front of the three. "Stop! What are you doing?!"

"Idiot." Ken choked out.

He ignored the blond and tried to look braver than he was. His knees were shaking and he kept shivering.

They simply observed him for a long moment before the one in the middle turned his bandaged face towards Reborn.

"Control your pupil."

Tsuna felt Reborn grab him by the collar and drag him back.

"Reborn!" He turned to his tutor feeling betrayed.

"No one interferes with the Vindice, Dame-Tsuna." The strain in Reborn's voice made him pause. "They are the law."

"But…" He shuddered. "What about Lancia?!"

"The Vindice will judge and punish them accordingly."

That was when pain his him like a tidal wave.

"Ack!"

He shuddered and gasped. Everything hurt. He collapsed on the ground panting and shaking.

Finally everything went black and he slide into unconsciousness.

* * *

><p><strong>So, when I got up this morning after staying up till 2 o'clock fighting with the darn chapter I said screw it and rewrote it. This is the result. <strong>**In all seriousness I really like it. As sorry and upset as I am over not getting it out when I said I would I'm glad I took the extra time to work on it. It's now longer and so much better than it was before and I am so happy about it. :,D**

**Okay so, the next chapter will be up in a hour or so. I know I said this one was the last, but my OCD wouldn't allow me to end an arc on chapter 19. It's essentially Tsuna's talk with Reborn, info on what Iemitsu did when he found out the Ninths orders, happy friend time in the hospital and Byakuran rearing his marshmallowy head. It's not very long, but it'll give this arc some closure. **

**Also before I move onto reviews. This chapter is my longest, yet, at over 6,000 words. XD **

**Reviews~**

**Hells Tenshi~ Thanks for the review! I'm glad you liked it at least. I'm very torn on it. Yeah, Reborn can be a prick, but he'll get better. I promise. XD Thanks again for the review!**

**crimsonarrows~ I noticed that about my writing as well. My original works are way more detailed, but I seem to struggle with that here. *shrugs* I'm working on it. Thanks for the review!**

**(ch. 5)Kyogre~ Thanks again for the review!**

**Alrighty, see you next chapter! Please Review and tell me what you think! XD**


	20. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: Sigh...**

* * *

><p>The first thing Tsuna saw when he woke up was a white ceiling. He blinked at it for a few moments before slowly trying to sit up. He was sore, but it was bearable. He glanced around guessing he was in the infirmary.<p>

"Dame-Tsuna."

"Hiiieee!"

Tsuna jumped then winced at the pain that sudden movement brought. He squinted at his tutor, who was standing on the chair beside the bed, half expecting a kick to the face for the scream, but Reborn merely smirked at him. He blinked in surprised his eye darting around the room as he tried to think of something to say.

"Um, so everyone is okay, right?"

"Yes, everyone was healed properly." Reborn tilted his head. "You did good Dame-Tsuna."

Tsuna smiled sheepishly a little embarrassed. "W-Well I didn't die, so that good."

"I wouldn't have let you die."

"Huh?" Tsuna frowned. "But I thought you said…."

Reborn interrupted him. "If you knew that I would make sure you didn't die than you would have never gotten the resolve to defeat Mukuro."

"That's sneaky." Tsuna sighed. He supposed he understood in a way, but that didn't mean he liked it. He had been so torn-up at the thought of dying and/or losing his friends.

"That's how Dying Will works Dame-Tsuna. You have to have a strong enough resolve. If there was no fear of death then why would you put your _Dying Will_ into fighting?" Reborn sat down and made himself comfortable on the chair. "The Ninth knew this, so he ordered me to pretend I would let you die."

Tsuna tensed, frowning. "Did the Ninth order you not to tell me about the Estraneo? To lie and say all they wanted was power?"

Reborn regarded him for a moment before answering. "No. He didn't say anything about that. That was my decision."

When it became clear the baby wouldn't fork over an answer Tsuna snapped.

"So, why didn't you tell me!? That was pretty important you know!" He looked down at his lap. "I just thought they were the bad guys. I didn't…I never thought. I never considered they've have a reason like that…"

"That's why I didn't tell you. Why I lie." Tsuna looked at Reborn sharply, but he was staring out into space. "I thought you'd pity them. I thought it would hinder you to the point you'd lose your resolve."

Reborn turned his eyes to his.

"I was wrong. You managed to not only continue to fight, but found the resolve to save Mukuro from himself. It was tremendously stupid."

Tsuna winced.

"But I suppose that's a part of your charm." Reborn shook his head at him in obvious disapproval.

Tsuna smiled slightly. He wasn't sure he liked secrets being kept from him. He had a feeling there was more to the Vongola now than what he had been told previously thanks to Mukuro's hints, but he didn't want to dwell on it now. He was tired and sore, but in a relatively good mood. He'd think on it at a later time.

Reborn seemed to sense his thoughts and switched topics.

"Your father was livid when he found out the Ninth sent you out to defeat Mukuro." Reborn smirked. "He came flying back from his mission and nearly destroyed the Ninths office in his anger. He nearly went marching over the theme park to help out, but he was stopped."

Tsuna blinked. "Really?"

The baby nodded. "The Guardians had to sedate him in order to calm him down. He's been pouting since he woke up and hovering outside your room, only leaving to go to the bathroom and get food."

Tsuna chuckled while shaking his head. He kind of wished that his father managed to join them. He had more experience and probably could have handled it, but things turned out okay in the end.

"Outside the room?"

"The nurse kicked him out for being too loud."

Tsuna burst out laughing.

"Your friends have also been occupying the hallway, but now that you're awake…"

The door flew open and banged against the wall startling Tsuna so bad he yelp again.

"Tsuna-sama! You're awake! I heard you laughing from outside!"

"Tsuna-nii you've been asleep for so long Lambo missed you!"

"Hahaha Tsuna you awake now!"

"MY SON!"

"EXTREME!"

Despite the noise Tsuna couldn't help but grin like a lunatic as his friends surrounded him.

* * *

><p>Reborn jumped from the chair and walked toward the door while everyone was distracted. He glanced back at the happy group and smirked.<p>

"What?! I've been asleep for a week?!"

"Hahahaha!"

"Shut-up Baseball freak! Don't laugh at Tsuna-sama!"

Part of his charm indeed.

Reborn wondered when exactly he, himself fell under it.

Regardless, as soon as Tsuna left the hospital they'd be training twice as much as before. He'd train the boy until he was better than the Primo ever was…

* * *

><p>"Hmmm, so Muku-chan has been defeated?"<p>

Byakuran pouted and shoved a marshmallow in his mouth.

"That's too bad~. I liked him."

"He was defeated by the Vongola Heir and dragged to the Vindice for punishment. Before you ask, I already sent a representative and the Vindice will under no circumstances allow us to barter for him."

His pout deepened and he shove three more marshmallows in his mouth, chewing them viciously.

"Mukuro did, however, send a photo of the Vongola Heir before he was beaten."

That perked him up he spun around in his chair and held out his hand. "Oooh show me Sho-chan!"

The redheads eye twitched at the nickname, but he handed it over.

"Hmmm…?" Byakuran's eyes raked over the small form of a young brunette. He seemed to be talking to someone not captured by the picture.

"I did a search and found a little information on him." Sho-chan looked down at his clipboard reading off his findings. "His name is Tsunayoshi Sawada. He's fourteen years old, born on October 14. It seems the Vongola is keeping everything else a secret."

"Hmm, Sawada. That's the name of the CEDEF leader right?"

Sho-chan nodded.

"Oooh, he's the boy I sent Iris after wasn't he?"

Sho-chan nodded again.

"Awe man! That would have been so interesting if we managed to get him first! To think all I wanted was to 'cause some pain to that annoying guy, but we could have landed on a gold mine! I wish I sent somebody earlier to get the boy."

"If I recall correctly, I suggest it earlier, but you waved me off in favor of taking a nap..."

"Hmm I don't remember that at all!"

"Well if thats all, ma excused sir?"

Byakuran waved him off. He glanced down at the picture again when Sho-chan had left the room in a huff. A wide grin crept across his face.

"Let's have some fun shall we, Tsu-chan?"

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><p><strong>I'm done! <strong>

**At least with the Mukuro arc. XD The Varia arc is coming up next and boy do I have some ideas for that one. Unfortunately they will remain ideas until I get situated in school and have time to sit down and plan. **

**Anyway I wasn't completely happy with this rewrite. I should have taken more time with it. As it is I need to go back and tweak a few things and do some major grammar/spelling edits. Overall I think its okay, its just the little things that bug me. Oh well, I'll keep this experience in mind if I ever do another rewrite of a story. You live and you learn, right?**

**So how'd you guys like it? Good, Bad, Mediocre? Review please! It give me motivation to continue! :D**


	21. Chapter 21: Extra

**Disclaimer: I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn much less any of the characters within it. **

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><p>It wasn't long before the nurse came barging in the room her eye flashing in anger. She ushered all of his friends out with sharp words and some slaps to the head. Tsuna could only watch helplessly as Gokudera sent him a wound look. The silverette begged silently for forgiveness as he was carted off by his ear for daring to threaten the woman with dynamite.<p>

None of his friends was a match for the woman and in the end the only person left was his father sitting in the chair next to the bed. The nurse gave him the stink eye for a long moment, but left him alone while she bustled around checking Tsuna's vitals. Her gentle smile was a bit disconcerting considering her entrance, but Tsuna didn't want to insult her so he smiled back and answered all her questions as politely as possible. If his smile was a bit shaky or his stutter more pronounced she didn't seem to mind.

Instead she left him with a stern warning that he _would be_ staying in the infirmary for several weeks and he would _not_ be doing anything to strain himself. Tsuna nodded his eyes wide.

"Alright dear, I'm sure you're hungry. So I'll got get one of the apprentices to bring you some food."

"T-Thank you." Tsuna waved his hesitant smile still in place.

His father chuckled. "The healers around here are given more leeway than in most dimensions. We still monitor for abuse of power, of course, but they have to deal with some downright insane people with crazy abilities to back them up. So, if they shout at or rough up their more difficult patients they don't have to worry about a lawsuit."

Tsuna nodded relaxing a little now that the room was quite. He wasn't really tired, but his body felt heavy.

"I believe your friend received quite a surprise when he to try to tell the healer he'd bite her to death. Anyway, he threatened her when she was trying to treat him. So, she proceeded to manhandle him back into bed and then strapped him there all the while telling him to respect her and her colleagues or he'd be spending a lot more time here than necessary."

Tsuna laughed deciding not to tell his dad that he actually didn't know Hibari very well. Though he did know the scary boy didn't like being told what to do. His father grinned at him.

"He just laid there after that, quietly muttering about dangerous herbivores." Iemitsu shook his head. "I looked in on all your friends while you're were unconscious. They're healing up just fine, though the mental damage the possession caused will take more time to heal."

Tsuna glanced at him in alarm, but he simply smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry, not all of them are effected. Gokudera and that Kyoko girl seem to be doing just fine…"

"But Fuuta and Haru?" Tsuna interrupted him remembering now that he hadn't seem those two among his friends just a few minutes ago.

"Fuuta was under Mukuro's control for longer. Not only that, but he is still a child and was being used for his unique power. He'll heal eventually, but it'll take time. Haru is struggling most likely because of her flame."

Tsuna frowned. "The mist flame?"

His father nodded. "Mist flames are very difficult to handle. In some ways they are the most difficult to harness, because you can't just rely on your resolve. Mist users must discipline their minds to control their flames. The art of illusions is all in the mind and thus the only limitation is how well they've mastered their own thoughts and emotions. To have one's mind invaded like that is difficult on anyone, but to mist flame users it the worst thing you could ever do to them. She's struggling due to that. She has the support of her peers in the illusion department, though, so I'm sure she'll work through it, but it'll take time."

Tsuna sighed and looked down. He felt guilty for getting everyone involved like that. Everyone got hurt because of him.

"I'm sorry Tsuna." He looked up at his father who was staring down at his hands folded in his lap.

"I didn't inherit much of the Primo's legendary Intuition. In battle I can sometimes feel some kind of guiding force telling me what I need to do to win, but outside of it I'm useless in that regard. Over the years I've gotten better at reading people, but the Ninth was never someone I could get a good read on." He looked up smiling sadly. "When he sent me out on another mission I went like a gullible idiot and left you hear to suffer through his plans."

"It's alright. Reborn was there after all."

"That just makes me angrier." He rubbed his face tiredly. "Aside from that you wouldn't even be in this situation if I had just been a little braver."

Tsuna tilted his head to the side in confusion and his father smiled wanly at him.

"I meet all the same credentials as you. Granted I don't have as much raw talent with my sky flames, but I have experience. I dreamed about it when I was younger and even worked my way through the ranks as fast as I could to make it there." He sighed at turned his eyes to the wall. "After I became the CEDEF leader and lost you and your mother I began to realize just how much of a responsibility that job required. I realized just how much the Ninth lost.

His own wife died in front of him, poisoned by someone they thought was a close friend. You know what happened to his first three sons. The only one he has left hates him and tried to kill him a few years ago. I became so afraid of that. It had already lost the two of you I didn't think I could handle having such an all-consuming job. So whenever the Ninth asked I turned him down. I stood by and watched as he grew older and more desperate."

He turned to Tsuna again. "I'm sorry. Due to my own fear I unknowingly set up the circumstances for you becoming the Heir. Now the Ninth has his heart set on you and nothing I say can stop him."

Tsuna smiled sadly. "Is that why the Ninth sent me to fight Mukuro? Because he's desperate for me to get stronger and take over quickly?"

"You have to understand Tsuna, he does his best, but he's been the boss of the Vongola for nearly forty years. It has consumed his life and ruined his family. If there's one thing you must know about him it's that the Vongola always comes first. He will lie and manipulate the situation in order to better the Vongola." His father sighed. "He sent you out there to test you. To try and get you to activate your flames despite how little training you've had so far."

Tsuna looked at his hands. Images of Mukuro, Ken and Chikusa flashed in his head. "I thought the Vongola was supposed to be the good guys."

"Define 'good guys'." Iemitsu grinned weakly at him. "Our goal is to protect and save the universe, it true, but we are not innocent of crimes. It's difficult to thrive when your enemy has no limitations and don't care about collateral damage. In the beginning we held ourselves to higher standards, but we were unwilling to make the hard choices and that led to more deaths. So, we fell. We began to lower ourselves to the Millefiore standards and since then we have grown and are doing better than ever."

Tsuna frown his hands clinching them gently in the blankets. "But at what cost?"

"The lives of others considered to be less important to the overall picture." Iemitsu patted his head gently. "I don't mean to scare you, but you are the Vongola Heir. I think you deserve to know more about the organization you're expected to lead one day."

Tsuna's gripped tightened. "But why me? Why can't it be the other son you mentioned?"

"Xanxus is…well he's…" He ran his hands through his hair. "He is currently the head of the Vongola's elite independent assassin squad, the Varia. If that doesn't say anything about his character I don't know what else would. Aside from that fact, nine years ago he tried to take over the Vongola by force. The Ninth only just released him from imprisonment a year ago. Since then he hasn't caused any trouble, but he is still a very violent and angry."

"Sounds like just the Vongola needs." Tsuna muttered in frustration.

His father laughed. "One would think, yes. However, despite his actions in the past and even now I believe the Ninth wants the Vongola to change. He doesn't want it be stained with anymore blood. He wants us to return to our old ways. Our old values."

"So, why would he pick me? I didn't know any of this until now. I mean I'm just...**. **I am probably the worst person to pick for such a job. I'm not strong."

"I wonder if Mukuro would say the same."

Tsuna threw his arms up. "I was just thrown into that fight. All I was doing was reacting. I didn't have time to think or, or plan. I was acting…"

"…on instinct."

Tsuna sent him a wounded look, but he just smiled.

"As much I hate the fact that you're in this situation. I can understand the Ninths reasons and I see the potential in you. Though you yourself seem to be blind to it." He patted his hand. "I know it's rough. I'm sorry I can't do anything about the situation, but I swear I will try and help you when and where I can."

Tsuna sighed and gave him a small smile. Their conversation digressed into safer topics which unfortunately included Tsuna's apparently adorable childhood antics. The apprentice came in with some food. Tsuna tore into his meal with the gusto of a starved man ignoring his father's laughter.

He wasn't sure what the future might hold for him. He still had troubling thoughts to sort-out, mostly involving Mukuro and the Vongola, but right now he was tired and sore. He'd think about the more complicated things another day. Preferably a day he had time to brood and moan about the unfairness of life without Reborn kicking him in the head over stupid thoughts.

When he finally fell asleep he dreamt of the night sky.

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><p><strong> Okidoki, so this was just a little whim of mine. I wanted Tsuna and his dad to have a little talk in order to sort some things out. We also have some foreshadowing with the next arc. One thing that bugs me about anime's like KHR (the shonen genre) is when villains just pop out of thin air. The main character is like 'what the heck' and someone else goes and explains that this guy or gal was there the whole time. Despite the fact that we saw no evidence of their existence even in passing. Khr was actually pretty good about this. The Varia arc was the only one that had this. The others arcs had a valid explanations for why we hadn't heard of the antagonists until then. In any case Tsuna now knows who Xanxus is and his role in the Vongola. I had mentioned them in passing in previous chapters, but now Tsuna gets the information up front. <strong>

** We also get a little foreshadowing with Haru's struggle along with some information (my head cannon) on the mist flame. I said this in the original, but Haru and Kyoko will have bigger roles in this story. They are a part of the Vongola and though they aren't guardian and probably will not be as strong or stronger than them (No offense to girl power, but you have to factor in the Vongola rings here) they are friends with them and will be treated as such. Just wanted to throw that out there for anyone who may have wanted to know. **

**Okay, so that info aside I'm sure you guys want to know how the second arc is coming along. Unfortunately its a very slow process with school and life and general getting in the way. I've just started going through the reviews and writing down what corrections you guys told me about for a grammar/spelling edit for this arc. I've been writing down ideas and plans, but I haven't gotten to the chapter writing stage yet. I'll get there I promise, but school always comes first. With that said let's move onto reviews, shall we?**

_**Review Corner~**_

_**crimsonarrows~ **_**Thank you so much for your reviews and advice through-out this rewrite. I really appreciate it. Yeah, I know there are mistakes in it, but I really like the Mukuro fight too (which is rare for me to like what I wrote, especially fight scenes XD). I'm glad you found it enjoyable too. **

_**Guest~ **_**Thank you for the review. Unfortunately**** that's a mistake I make often. I'll look into it. XD**

_**Natsu Yuuki~ **_**Thank you! I'm glad you liked it!**

_**KitsuneNaru~**_** Thanks for the review! There will be more Mukuro I promise. XD **

_**Great~ **_**Thanks for the review. I'm glad you liked it! Yeah, I know. I'll be doing a edit soonish.**

_**Kyogre~ **_**Thank you so much for all of your reviews! I love them so much! Yes, I know these fights were very close to the original. You're right it was really hard to try and deviate while remaining true to the source material. Hopefully, I'll be able to strike a better balance in the next arc. As far as Reborn goes, he'll get better as Tsuna and him become closer. But honestly, as much as I love him I do get the jerk vibe from him and I'm sure it shows in my writing. Like I said though, he'll get better. **

_**Arithra~ **_**Thank you for the review! Yes, I love adding the little things that are changed due to the difference. :D**

_**lovelydragonfly~ **_**Thanks for the review! I like a strong Tsuna too. XD**

**Thank you guys so much for you support and reviews! Also! Before I forget, I had a little idea for the Hibari-Mukuro fight that we didn't see. Since Hibari wasn't bitten by the sakura illness mosquito thingy I imaged it went a bit differently. Right now its just a little thought bunny in that back of my mind, but if you guys want I can type it out. So, do you guys want me to type it out? I can add it as another in between chapter, like this one. Let me know what you guys think! **


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